For the past 22 years volunteers from the Aisling Irish Community Center have been feeding the homeless at Thanksgiving and this year is no different.

There is no better way to give thanks as we head into Thanksgiving than to help someone in need by preparing a meal for them. For over 22 years the Aisling Irish Community Center’s Irish volunteers for the homeless prepare over 325 holiday-meals that are delivered to New York City. For many of NYC’s homeless this is their only meal of the day.

Every Monday the Aisling Irish Community Center feeds the homeless. Volunteers come into the center on McLean Ave, Yonkers, NY every week to prepare sandwiches, drinks and a dessert for hundreds of homeless people. A crew of dedicated volunteers gives time each week to help the community and then every Monday evening another crew comes into the center to pick up the food and drinks, and bring them to various locations throughout the city, including Fifth Avenue where hundreds of homeless people seek shelter by night on the steps of churches along the Avenue.

It comes together like clockwork, making sure the program happens each and every Monday. The two crews have it down to a science of what needs to be prepared; all the way from setting up the prep stations to delivery in the city, they know how important the program is for those in need and have invested not only their time but also their hearts in giving back.

Thanksgiving is America’s second most favorite holiday of the year and to bring a special meal into the city is important. If you come to the center Monday, November 19th, you’ll see a very happy group of volunteers, carving the turkeys and hams, and putting Thanksgiving meals together for that evening’s run into the city. It’s a big job to get done, and the Aisling Center is thankful for our wonderful volunteers!

It warms our heart to be able to serve a Thanksgiving meal to someone who does not have the basic necessities of food and shelter, continuing our mission to help others who are in need. We feel the Aisling Irish Community Center is making a difference every day with the programs we offer our community, and welcome you to come into our center and benefit from our services.

More than 1.2 million New Yorkers face hunger every year. In NYC, a city of 8.5 million people, more than 58,000 homeless men, women and children sleep in homeless shelters and at least 3,100 more sleep on the streets and subways in the dead of winter. This means that one in every 147 New Yorkers is currently homeless.

When looking at the enormous numbers of homeless, the center’s program serves a small number, but it’s important to each and every person the center is able to help. Making a difference, one person at a time, one turkey dinner at a time. The annual cost of the Aisling Center’s Feed the Homeless program, $30,000, is mostly raised from donations and fundraising, in addition to a few generous, year round, restaurants in the area.

For more information on the services offered or how you can donate to any of the programs, contact the Aisling Irish Community Center at www.aislingcenter.org, 914.237.5121.

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