A “First Fridays” meet up. Photo courtesy of the Kiwanis Club of Sunnyside.
Aug. 2, 2017 By Nathaly Pesantez
The Kiwanis Club of Sunnyside has been hosting monthly social mixers to raise money for two local food pantries, with the next mixer happening this Friday.
The program, called “Sunnyside First Fridays”, makes arrangements with neighborhood locales to host evening events, and asks attendees for donations, either monetary or in the form of non-perishable foods, for the food pantries at Saint Teresa in Woodside and Saint Raphael in Long Island City.
Full proceeds from the mixers go to one food pantry every month on an alternating basis.
William Sadd, the president of the Kiwanis Club, said the event was conceived of as an ongoing, tangible method to tackle what he believes is an overlooked problem in New York City—food insecurity.
“When we learned that 13 percent of Queens residents and 10 percent of Queens children are food insecure, we decided this was a backyard problem the club could help address by partnering with community establishments and institutions,” Sadd said.
The social mixers began December 2015, and usually raise about $250 from a mixed crowd of 15 to 20 people, ages ranging from 20 to 60 who gather in places like Bar 43, The Globe Tavern, and Uncle Jimmy’s Pizzeria. The restaurants and bars often provide complimentary food and drinks or at discounted prices.
The next fundraising mixer will be held at Arriba Arriba, located at 40-15 Queens Boulevard, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. on August 4, with a suggestion donation of $10.00 for attendees.
For more information on the program, visit the program page here.
