Cannabis and Thanksgiving have always been in good company. It can be used to celebrate the holiday with those we love or as an aid to increasing our tolerance for skeptical, judgemental or opinionated relatives. In recent years Green Wednesday (the day before Thanksgiving), has become the cannabis industry’s second-highest grossing day of sales.

While the holidays are a great time to reflect on everything we have, it’s also an opportunity to look outside ourselves to help others. Many cannabis companies have established initiatives that help those who are in greatest need. Businesses have made arrangements for free turkeys and rewards customers who give canned food to a charity. The above list does not reflect all the efforts made by the cannabis industry every year. Be sure to visit dispensaries in your area to find out what other initiatives are being undertaken.

There are several Michigan cannabis companies that have gone all out this year. Puff Cannabis is giving away 1,700 birds in specific areas on Nov. 18 and 21-22. CBS News’ Nick Hannawa, the owner of Puff Cannabis said it was important to give back. “These things are tough, you know, with prices and inflation and all the things that are going on. Maybe people, you know, are lacking on jobs and different things, you know, might not do this,” Hannawa said. “It’s that feeling that you get, knowing that you did a good deed, that you put a smile on somebody’s face.”

Light’N Up Cannabis Company invited former Detroit Red Wings athlete Darren McCarty to help hand out 1,000 turkeys on Nov. 19. Kyle Cohee who is also a veteran said that the company started this program in 2021 after finding out that he had 100 patients in need. “We’re just doing the right thing and taking care of people,” Cohee said. “Alpine Market in Linden said they will hook us up and got us the turkeys from Spartan Brand for cost.” Eighty of the turkeys will specifically be reserved for veteran patients, through a partnership with Genesee County Veterans Services.

Multiple Michigan dispensaries are working with Common Citizen and High Life Farms for the “Bring a Can, Get a Gram” campaign. It is aiming to gather 2,000 cans in order to give to food pantries. Customers who bring at least one food item will get one pre-roll. “We want to show people that cannabis isn’t just about consuming. It’s far more than just being a big name company that wants to make money or kind of things like that. We want to show people that as much as we love growing and producing and sharing our love for the product with other people, we want to show other people we care more about helping the community and helping others in need especially around the holidays,” said High Life Farms’s Marketing Manager Laura Bywalec.

MariMed (who you might remember as the company who made the world’s largest infused brownie in December 2021) is offering hundreds of turkeys in a giveaway at its locations in Massachusetts, Maryland, Illinois, and Delaware. “MariMed is proud to do our part and help others in the communities where we operate. Helping to ease a bit of the financial burden on Thanksgiving and doing what we can to improve people’s lives through our actions, products, and values is core to our mission as a leading cannabis company,” said MariMed CEO Bob Fireman.

Terps Cannabis in Massachusetts is partnering with Chip-in-Food-Pantry and asking for canned food donations from customers. It’s also celebrating the opening of its third location in Charlton with an event Nov. 18-20, featuring free food from local food trucks.

Bulldog Cannabis, a local dispensary, has partnered with Riverside County in Thousand Palms, California to deliver 100 turkeys (1 to each household). “We really appreciate Bulldog Cannabis for providing this generous donation to the community of Thousand Palms,” said Riverside County Supervisor Manuel Perez. “I look forward to helping in this distribution and thanking this local business for assisting the community with food for the Thanksgiving holiday.”

Oakland, California-based savory edibles company TSUMo is not only offering two new flavors of its savory chips (Turkey Dinner and Churro) but it’s partnering with Wunder (a local cannabis beverage company) and Nugg Club (a cannabis subscription service) to donate $2 for every bundle purchased, which will be given to the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank.