Joseph Lichter, D.D.S.
1420 Avenue P, 2nd Floor
Btw. E. 14th & 15th St.
Brooklyn, NY 11229
COURIER LIFE,24 MARCH 27-APRIL 2, 2020
Kensington restaurant
delivering free lunches
to those in need
Jess Calvo and Elizabeth Kanyawee Calvo of Thai Farm Kitchen.
Photo courtesy Thai Farm Kitchen
BY BEN VERDE
Owners of a Kensington eatery say
they’re offering to deliver free lunches
to locals who need them in attempt to
shine a light during dark times.
“We just want to be a small candlelight
to the community, and make
some light in the darkness,” said
Jess Calvo, the owner of Thai Farm
Kitchen.
The Church Avenue restaurant is
offering to deliver lunches right to the
door of anyone who needs it within
a one-mile radius, including seniors
and people with disabilities, without
expectation of a tip or any unnecessary
human contact.
Calvo, who owns Thai Farm
Kitchen along with his wife Elizabeth
Kanyawee Calvo, said he decided to
pitch in after watching the groundswell
of negativity and suffering that
has stemmed from the spread of the
novel coronavirus, including hate
crimes towards Asians, mass layoffs,
and scammers seeking to exploit the
vulnerable.
The Kensington restaurateur said
he felt the need to help however and
whoever he could, and that everyone
who is able should try and do the
same.
“If you can offer just a small gesture
to anybody, even helping someone
crossing the road would be good
enough,” he said.
As of Monday, Calvo said his restaurant
is delivering to about seven
people per day, but that number is
growing as more people reach out to
them. Already, Thai Farm Kitchen
has helped some seniors in the
neighborhood, including a 70-yearold
woman who is looking after her
8-year-old grandson while his mother
is quarantined with coronavirus. All
have responded with gratitude, with
some breaking down in tears as they
thanked Calvo — who makes sure to
check in on those he helps over the
phone as they may be isolated.
Meanwhile, Thai Farm Kitchen
has been hit just as hard as any other
local business, said Calvo, who has
had to move his full-time staff to a
part-time schedule while he remains
open for takeout and delivery only.
But, while the staff may be working
less, Calvo said the opportunity
to help others has given his employees
a sense of purpose during the pandemic,
and that others looking to volunteer
have even reached out offering
to help with deliveries.
“They feel honored to do this,” he
said. “They feel that they are also
helping other people, they feel connected,
they feel that they are doing
something great, everybody is lifting
up their candle.”
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