Fortune Society gives away 360 turkeys

More than 350 clients in the Fortune Society - an organization based in Long Island City that offers re-entry services to formerly incarcerated individuals - received free turkeys for Thanksgiving thanks to an anonymous donor and help from the poverty-fighting Robin Hood Foundation.
“It helps make the holidays more meaningful to our clients,” said Glenn Martin, Vice President of Development and Public Affairs for the Fortune Society.
Throughout the day on Monday, November 24, clients could present their Fortune Society IDs at the organization’s recently opened 65,000 square foot facility in Long Island City, and Fortune Society staff would give them a free turkey for themselves and their families. In addition, they included a recipe sheet complete with recipes for turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and fresh green beans.
One of the Fortune Society’s clients, Edwin, 19, has been utilizing the organization’s services since he was released from Riker’s Island in June. He picked up a turkey on Monday.
“It was a pretty good thing,” said Edwin, who planned to bring the turkey home to his mother and brothers in Ridgewood for Thanksgiving. “It was something where you really can’t get anywhere else.”
The Fortune Society works with more than 3,000 clients per year, providing services including counseling, drug treatment, HIV/AIDS-specific case management, education, career development, alternatives to incarceration and family services accommodate the growing number of men and women working to build new lives after engagement in the criminal justice system.
One activity they provide to their clients is weekly cooking classes with “Miss Betty” where clients - many of whom are single fathers - come into the kitchen and an instructor teaches them how to cook. While the actual cooking lesson is important, there is a more underlying message they are trying to relay to their clients.
“Part of it is when you teach someone how to cook [and] set a table - and for most of these folks this it the first time they are sitting down to have a meal - that in turn helps them to go back and cook for their families,” Martin said.
During those sessions, the staff at the Fortune Society also discusses with the clients, the importance of family reunification as well as handling problems within the family environment, according to Martin.