350 fed in eighth annual event Terry Thanksgiving

By Sheila Harris [email protected]

In 2018, seven living Terry siblings of the original nine, all originally from Purdy, opened their arms to welcome the community at large to their annual family Thanksgiving dinner. 

The invitation was eagerly accepted by many residents who had no one with whom to gather, nor any particular plans on Thanksgiving Day.

“My brother and sisters and I decided we wanted to serve a community dinner in honor of our parents,” said John Terry, the third son and the seventh of nine children born to Ava Lee and Jerry Terry, who passed away in 2009 and 1980, respectively.

The Terry siblings’ decision, in part, was based on the sheer size of their extended family.

“By the time we kids married and started having kids, our family had grown so large that it was impossible for us to all meet in one house, so we had to split up,” Terry said. “I think there were about 50 of us when it got to that point.”

About 15 years ago, Ken Terry (the youngest Terry son) and his wife, Julie, constructed a metal building on a cleared lot at the junction of Business Highways C and 37 in Purdy, which they planned to partition and use for commercial storage units. 

But, the summer before dividing it, because it was situated in such a high-traffic area in Purdy standards, they decided to put up a tent and sell commercial fireworks before continuing with the interior division of the building. 

That fireworks venture was so successful that it became an annual family business – Terry’s Family Fireworks — operated with the help of their four sons, then later, their daughters-in-law.

From its unsecured tent beside the main intersection in Purdy, the business was moved indoors, into the large, empty building – fated, from that point, to remain foever partition-less.

“It was just so convenient to shut the doors on the business at night and go home to sleep that we decided not to use the building for storage units,” Julie Terry said.

Their win-win decision benefited the community at large.

The Gathering Place, as the building was later named, has become a hub, of sorts, in Purdy. Residents can rent the building to host garage sales, family dinners and benefits, and it’s a place the Terry family can use for community events – like its annual family Thanksgiving dinner.

“With so much space available, we wanted to invite more people to join our family dinner, but there was really no place to stop,” John Terry said, “so we decided just to invite everybody.”

A new Terry family tradition was born.

“That first year, we served a turkey and ham dinner to 75 people,” said Julie Terry.

Since 2018, those of Ava Lee and Jerry’s children who were available, plus their children and grandchildren, have met on Thanksgiving Day at The Gathering Place in Purdy to serve food to area residents.

“I have nieces and nephews who drive down every year from north of Kansas City to help with the dinner,” John Terry said. “They get a kick out of delivering meals and visiting with people from this area.”

Last week, Thanksgiving Day 2025, marked the Terry family’s eighth community dinner. Of the original remaining siblings, their brother, Donnie, was unable to attend the event this year.

A sister, Patsy Boyd, who was instrumental in helping plan past community dinners, passed away in November 2024, the week before last year’s dinner was held.

Two other siblings, Joe Lee Terry and Shirley Terry Allen, died many years before the first 2018 dinner was planned.

The siblings still living – Nancy Roller, Norma Jean (Jeannie) Trogdon, Jane Sisney, and Donnie, John and Ken Terry, along with their spouses and children – planned to serve about 250 people this year.

“With the recent government shutdown and higher food prices, we were expecting more people this year,” Julie Terry said.

In an effort to meet those expectations, Ken Terry, his son, Cameron, and grandson, Bryson, were up before dawn to get 20 turkeys into the smoker by 6 a.m., followed by 10 hams at 8 a.m.

The trimmings, including mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, corn, brown beans, cole slaw, hot rolls, cheese and cracker trays, and pumpkin and pecan pies, were ready by serving time, scheduled for 11 a.m.

Although the meal is called the Terry Family Community Thanksgiving Dinner, unrelated members of the community volunteer their time and resources toward its success.

Jamie Lynn’s, in Monett, makes the hot rolls. Purdy resident Lee Ann Leamon washes dishes. Purdy High School student Brooklyn Phelan volunteers her time in the serving line.

“I want to give back to my community,” she said.

Others, too, are involved in the dinner that has become a beloved Purdy tradition.

“We have some residents who contribute money toward the dinner items,” Julie Terry said.

While the Purdy Family Thanksgiving dinner isn’t classified as a potluck, the spirit of community — of gathering for fellowship and feeding oneself and feeding one’s neighbors with the resources on hand — is comparable.

Lawrence and Connie Shuey, formerly of Purdy, but who long since moved away, have come back to Purdy to attend the Terry family dinner every year.

Lawrence Shuey was once the pastor at Arnhart Baptist Church, east of Purdy, where the Terry’s attended.

“My relationship with the Terrys goes way back,” he said.

“He’s preached at weddings and funerals for lots of Terrys over the years,” Connie Shuey said.

Ronnie and Leatrice Strother, of Purdy, have also made it an annual tradition to attend the Terry Thanksgiving dinner.

“It’s wonderful that they want to give back to the community this way,” Leatrice Strother said. “It’s nice to come here to visit with friends and not have to cook.

The Strothers’ granddaughter, Amy Mooney, attended the dinner with them for the second time this year.

John Terry said, in 2020, when COVID precluded an in-person community meal, the Thanksgiving dinner, nevertheless, went on. Meals, prepared to order, were served through a window for people who drove in or walked in to pick them up.

“Much like a restaurant,” he said.

By noon this year, the Terrys realized that the reality of their 2025 dinner was outpacing all their expectations. The servers ran out of green beans — five gallons of them — by noon, with other dishes looking to follow. According to Julie Terry’s calculations, about 300 meals had already been served by that time, including those delivered to Autumn Woods, the senior citizen apartments in Purdy.

When the official serving time ended at 1 p.m., the Terry’s discovered they had served about 350 meals.

“That’s 200 more meals than last year,” Julie Terry said.

The number is more than quadruple the amount served at their first community dinner in 2018.

The Terry family — every member of it, plus those who volunteer — is pleased to see the community’s overwhelming response to their hospitality.

For those who don’t have plans on Thanksgiving Day in 2026, an invitation is extended. Join the Terry Family for their ninth annual community Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, November 26, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“It’s nice to just be able to set a date and time and let friends and family members plan around it,” John Terry said.