By: Molly Voit
As Thanksgiving quickly approaches, many New Yorkers are getting ready to eat in excess and spend quality time with family. However, there are also many New Yorkers are not fortunate enough to spend their Thanksgivings in this way. According to the Bowery Mission, over 63,000 New Yorkers are homeless and don’t have the resources for a Thanksgiving meal. This year, please consider spending some of your long Thanksgiving weekend helping those in need.
What you can do anywhere:
- Donate non-perishable food to a food bank. Using this website, https://www.feedingamerica.org/find-your-local-foodbank, find a food bank near a location convenient for you and take a trip to drop off some goods.
- Meals on Wheels prepares meals for senior citizens unable to make them independently and delivers them to the senior’s doorstep. You can volunteer this Thanksgiving by signing up at this link: https://www.mealsonwheelsamerica.org/americaletsdolunch.
- Run a Turkey Trot race for a cause. Turkey Trots are fun races taking place the morning of Thanksgiving all around America helping runners burn some calories before a big Thanksgiving meal and benefit local charities. Use this site to find a race near you and the organizations they will be supporting: https://www.active.com/turkey-trots.
- Donate money and necessities to people affected by natural disasters. Many families who are experiencing the effects of the California wildfires and other environmental issues will have a harder time accessing food to have a Thanksgiving meal. You can donate to one of the nonprofits mentioned in this article to help provide relief for those impacted by the wildfires: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/11/reader-center/california-fires-how-to-help.html.
If you’ll be in NYC this Thanksgiving:
- Volunteer with Citymeals on Wheels. To volunteer with this organization, you can either deliver meals, visit seniors in their homes or chat with them on the phone, make cards, or help package meals. See this website to learn more about how to get involved: https://www.citymeals.org/get-involved.
- Masbia is a food pantry and soup kitchen network helping to feed thousands of hungry New Yorkers. Donating $6 to the organization will sponsor a hot meal and $54 will sponsor a family food package; if you donate here, please donate in factors of 6 or 54. To sign up to volunteer with Masbia, visit this website: https://www.masbia.org/volunteer_signup.
- The Bowery Mission is committed to helping homeless and hungry New Yorkers. This Thanksgiving, you can contribute to their efforts by volunteering on Thanksgiving day or by fundraising. For more information, see this website: https://www.bowery.org/programs/choose-help/thanksgiving/.
Although this list does not include every way to give back this Thanksgiving, there are many options that are easily accessible to everyone. In the spirit of a holiday around recognizing what we are thankful for, please take some time using the resources above to help those whose privileges are not as many.
Image: https://assets.agentfire3.com/uploads/sites/2/2018/04/1572786135.jpg