A little touch of Thanksgiving came a week early for our guests in Manhattan when we served 60 turkey meals during last night’s Soup Run. Along with the hot meals, we provided 100 sandwiches, cookies and bottles of water. We also offered socks, underwear, hats, scarves, toiletries and blankets. The blankets were gone within minutes.
We talked with James while we were stationed in front of St. Francis on 31st Street. James was friendly, articulate and could have been a family member to any one of us. At the age of 30, he finds himself without a family or a home. He told us that his mother and grandmother, with whom he lived, died from COVID within the same week this year. Due to a series of financial issues, he lost his family home on Long Island. He receives a $288 monthly government check for housing – clearly not enough to rent even a room. Instead, James said he lives on the street in New York City while he navigates social service agency procedures and awaits permanent housing.
Alex was hungry and sitting on the sidewalk across from Madison Square Garden with a sign and a bag of his belongings. If he had the benefit of a shower, shave and clean clothes, Alex could be any of our brothers (but isn’t everyone our brother?). We offered food, socks, underwear and toiletries. He quickly ate and packed up to move to a covered spot as the rain started to fall.
We gave a meal to another young man who started walking away before we could give him utensils. When we called him back to give him a fork, he said would have just broken off a corner of the plastic lid from the meal container to eat if he needed to. “You have to be tough and improvise – that’s what we do every day to live out here,” he said.
Improvise. Persist. Survive. This is what our guests do all day and all night as they live their lives on the streets of New York, whether by choice or by circumstance. Without judgment, we try to help them one meal at a time.
The monthly Soup Run is an eye-opening, hands-on, compassionate outreach to directly serve those who are most in need. We are blessed with support and generosity from so many. Throughout the month and all year long, we plan, gather items and organize for the day we have set aside to serve our guests. It is through the donations of those in the Holy Trinity community and beyond – including supporters and volunteers from across Westchester County, Queens, Long Island, New York City, Stamford, CT and Cranford, NJ, those of various faiths and friends of friends, who make this important outreach a reality. This month we are grateful to the following supporters:
- Financial Support
- Minos Samoladas
- November Soup Run Sponsor: Peter and Angie Lambros
- Philoptochos of Holy Trinity New Rochelle, NY
- Meals
- Manny Louros
- Kathy Papataros
- Dr. Lucy and Dr. Peter Caviris
- Clothing
- Deborah Farone, Angie Lambros – Fleece Blankets
- Mary Demas (Kimisis Tis Theotokou/Panaghia of Island Park) – Hand Knit Scarves
- Suzanne Negrin – Crocheted Hats and Scarves
- Ron & Andrea Nicholas – Underwear
- Alexandra Speres – Socks
- Melina Morris and Bombas (https://bombas.com ) – Socks
- Toiletry Kits
- Georgeann Mavrovitis, Laurie Curtis, Alexandra Speres and Maryann Koutsis
- Bags – FreshDirect (freshdirect.com)
With much appreciation, we thank you for your continuing support and participation. Donations of new men’s and women’s underwear, T-shirts (sizes LG and XL), new sneakers (size 12) and new blankets (e.g., small fleece blankets) are the only items we are currently accepting.
Wishing you and your families a lovely Thanksgiving. In the words of Mother Teresa, “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.” Maybe we can all feed just one more person this holiday season.
The next Soup Run is scheduled for December 23, 2021. Please join us.