Borough President Katz Partners with Stop & Shop to Donate 1000 Easter Hams to Local Queens Organizations

QUEENS, NY – Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and Stop & Shop, with help from students of I.S. 93Q, today unloaded 1,000 Easter hams off an 18-wheeler in front of Borough Hall, donated in time for preparations for the upcoming holiday to five local Queens organizations: Catholic Charities Queens North Community Center of Astoria, Chinese-American Planning Council’s Nan Shan Senior Center of Flushing, Hour Children of Long Island City, Korean Community Services Senior Centers of Corona and Flushing, and Queensbridge/Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement Senior Center of Long Island City. Each organization received hundreds of hams today to prepare meals or distribute to Queens families. The substantial donation is part of Stop & Shop’s continuing commitment to help local communities fight hunger and seeks to provide some relief to those in need this Easter.

“As families prepare for the upcoming holiday, Queens is delighted to partner with Stop & Shop and several local service organizations dedicated to the well-being of residents all ages,” said Queens Borough President MELINDA KATZ. “Queens thanks Stop & Shop for extending such generosity to our communities that make up the Borough of Families.”

“We are proud to partner with Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and her office to help fight hunger in local Queens communities and provide some relief to those in need this Easter,” said CINDY CARRASQUILLA, Manager of Community and Public Relations, Stop & Shop – New York Metro. “This donation is part of Stop & Shop’s continued commitment to partner with organizations in our local communities and provide support to worthy causes that can ultimately make a difference in someone’s life.”

“We are so grateful to Stop & Shop and the Queens Borough President for their generous contribution of hams for 100 of our families,” said RICHARD SLIZESKI, Vice President of Mission at Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens. “Especially around the holidays, our network of 22 food pantries see hundreds of families struggling. This distribution effort will help offset the cost for many families eager to have a beautiful ham as part of their Easter meal.”

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank our Borough President Melinda Katz and Stop & Shop for their continued support in providing our seniors with Easter hams,” said WAYNE HO, President and CEO of the Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC). “The generous support of individuals like you makes it possible for our organization to provide the needed support of our seniors and make our community a great place to live.”

“We thank you for including Hour Children in this opportunity,” said SISTER TESA FITZGERALD, Executive Director of Hour Children. “Although we have often been able to distribute turkeys at Thanksgiving, this is the first time we have been able to distribute fresh hams. They will be a big hit with many members of the community.  Food pantries like ours generally rely on non-perishable foods. We’re often able to have fresh produce, as well. It’s much less often that we have fresh meat available. We great appreciate the Borough President and Stop & Shop for making this possible!”

“On behalf of KCS, we wanted to express our utmost gratitude to Melinda Katz, the Queens Borough President, and Stop & Shop, for their generous donation of Easter hams to our seniors,” said LINDA LEE, Executive Director of Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York (KCS). “This donation will allow the seniors to have a special holiday meal to celebrate Easter and emphasizes the spirit of giving, which is at the heart of KCS’ mission. KCS’ senior centers and homebound meals programs were initiated many years ago from seed funding that was given through the Queens Borough President’s Office, and we are always so humbled and honored by generous donations such as this that remind us how important our immigrant communities are to this City and Borough. We are very grateful for the opportunity to share this meal with our community.”

“Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement is extremely grateful to Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and Stop & Shop for facilitating the generous donation of Easter hams to the families of Queensbridge Houses,” said CHRIS HANWAY, Executive Director of Queensbridge/Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement Senior Center. “This kind gesture will go a long way to ensuring that the community members we serve have a wonderful Easter holiday, and for that we are thankful.”
Photos available upon request.

 

ABOUT THE RECIPIENT ORGANIZATIONS

For over 117 years, Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens (CCBQ) has been providing quality social services to the neighborhoods of Brooklyn and Queens, and currently offers 160-plus programs and services for children, youth, adults, seniors, those with developmental disabilities, and those struggling with mental illness. As one of the largest faith-based developers of affordable housing in the country, Catholic Charities provides 2,900 units of housing for low-income seniors, families, and the formerly homeless and formerly homeless veterans throughout Brooklyn and Queens. The hams will go to families served at the food pantry in Astoria, Queens.

Chinese-American Planning Council, Inc.’s (CPC’s) mission is to serve the Chinese American, immigrant and low-income communities in New York City by providing services, skills and resources towards economic self-sufficiency. As one of the largest nonprofit providers of educational, social, and community services for Asian Americans in the United States, CPC provides culturally sensitive programs for all ages. CPC currently serves over 8,000 people daily through over 50 programs in 30+ locations citywide. In addition, CPC’s affiliates provide housing and home attendant services. CPC’s Nan Shan Senior Center in Flushing provides seniors ages 60+ with congregate lunch, recreational and educational activities, health and wellness activities and case assistance.

Hour Children of Long Island City helps incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women and their children successfully rejoin the community, reunify with their families, and build healthy, independent, and secure lives. To accomplish this, Hour Children provides compassionate and comprehensive services and encourages all to live and interact with dignity and respect. In the past year, the Hour Community Food Pantry served over 9,000 people, and Hour Children provided Supportive Housing to 199 women and children.

Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York (KCS) provides culturally competent programs in the areas of Aging, Education, Immigration, Workforce Development, Public Health and Mental Health. KCS’ senior centers in Corona and Flushing combined serve over 100,000 well-balanced meals to seniors a year on a daily basis, and thousands of whom participated in educational or recreational activities and received case assistance for benefits and services.

The Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement Senior Center offers health, nutrition and social services to seniors 60 and older. From free meals to health screenings to art projects, participants are offered over 200 different activities throughout the year to maintain active, healthy lives in a friendly and educational setting. We work hard to ensure that seniors are able to maintain healthy and independent lives throughout our community.

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