Now Black is predicting one of the best dinners ever, thanks to the generosity of dozens of people who heard that she was short on cooked turkeys, hams and pies. They have kept her cell phone ringing every other minute today, Black said.

"People have really come through," she said. "Talk about restoring your faith in community. This is a reality slam."

She’s got the seven turkeys and the seven hams she needed and the pies, too.

"I am so thrilled," Black said. "There is a lady who works at Foodland who said she will come with 20 pies but she said she wants to pay for them out of her own pocket."

Black’s Kau Kau Wagon Thanksgiving dinner, which is served at 11 a.m. on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, has been a regular fixture in Chinatown since 1988. Black, who also works as the Honolulu Police Department’s outreach worker for the homeless, is expecting about 500 people.

Although she couldn’t pinpoint a reason, Black initially had trouble this year finding donors. She said she had never struggled this much.

What makes it tough is that donors have to prepare the food themselves. Black doesn’t have a big enough kitchen, although she plans to cook two hams and two turkeys. In previous years, she has organized a loose-knit network of cooks who come together to feed the homeless.

People also have called to donate clothing.

"There are senior citizens donating clothes," she said. "It is mind-boggling."

The end result will be something the community can be proud of, she said.

"We’re going to have a great Thanksgiving," Black said. "I can promise you that."