Families wait at Bergfeld Park in 2019, for “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” to begin.

In light of rising COVID-19 cases in the area, the East Texas Food Bank has canceled its 11th annual Charlie Brown Thanksgiving event that was set for Friday night at Bergfeld Park.

The free event is held each year to show a screening of “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” and, if people are able to, the food bank asks that they bring a jar of peanut butter for the families served by the food bank.

In an announcement Thursday, food bank officials said this cancellation was made out of an abundance of caution, citing the Northeast Texas Public Health District’s recent statistics about “substantial community spread” of the virus.

On Wednesday, NET Health shared that, in the past week, the number of COVID-19 cases has risen substantially in five of the seven counties the health district provides health surveillance for.

These five counties include Smith, Gregg, Wood, Van Zandt and Rains. As of Wednesday, Tyler hospitals were treating 176 East Texans for COVID-19, according to NET Health.

“We look forward to this community event every year, but given the dramatic increases in COVID-19 cases, and particularly hospitalizations, we feel it’s in the best interest to cancel the event,” said East Texas Food Bank CEO Dennis Cullinane. “The East Texas Food Bank has a deep concern for the communities we serve and are encouraging everyone to adhere to the safety guidelines set out by public health authorities.”

NET Health describes substantial community spread as “large-scale, uncontrolled community transmission, including congregate settings, such as schools, workplaces, nursing homes and daycares.”

The event held traditionally ahead of Thanksgiving is meant to bring young families together while also raising awareness about hunger, and especially the children dealing with it, Cullinane said.

He said the primary purpose of the gathering is not a food drive, although the food bank does receive barrels of peanut butter each year.

For those still wanting to make donations, people can bring small food donations, like the peanut butter, to the main food bank office, located at 3201 Robertson Road in Tyler, or to one of the food bank’s partner pantries.

Partner pantries within the East Texas Food Bank’s 26-county coverage area can be found by visiting easttexasfoodbank.org and clicking the “find food” tab at the top of the website.

The decision to cancel the event was difficult because the food bank and community members were looking forward to it, but the choice was easy when looking at recent COVID-19 rises, Cullinane explained.

“We just wanted to make sure we kept our attendees safe and not exposed by this event,” he said.

He hopes this voluntary cancellation will help people become more aware of the virus, especially as the holiday season approaches.

Next year’s Charlie Brown Thanksgiving event is set to go on as normal at Bergfeld Park.

“We look forward to a time when we can safely bring our community together again,” Cullinane said.