It was a triple play combination – all for a good cause – as the New York Mets, Goya and City Harvest teamed up to donate 5,000 pounds of food to food pantries throughout the city.
In order to kick off the efforts, New York Mets outfielder Angel Pagan and representatives from Goya and City Harvest visited Hour Children Food Pantry in Long Island City where they delivered 1,000 pounds of food on Wednesday, December 16.
“It’s Goya’s philosophy to give back to people in times of need, whether it be an everyday thing or because of natural disaster and what better way to do it than during the Christmas season,” said Rafael Toro, Director of Public Relations for Goya.
As part of the partnership between Goya, the Mets and City Harvest, Goya pledged to donate 5,000 pounds of Goya products during a good drive at Citi Field in September as part of the team’s annual Hispanic Heritage night.
“Right now I’m very happy to be helping to donate this food and to make the holidays a little happier,” Pagan said. “I’m really enjoying it. I’m looking forward to keep doing it in the future and keep putting smiles on people’s [faces].”
Christy Robb, director of Hour Children Food Pantry, said the 1,000 pounds of food was a special donation, and it will help provide food for the increased number of people who rely on the pantry throughout the year. Robb said that the number of participants at the food pantry is up about 38 percent over last year.
“The holidays, as was mentioned, is a hard time, but every week is a hard time for New Yorkers right now so this will not just go out at Christmas, it will be a part of our stock for the next few weeks hopefully,” Robb said.
