Playing poker for a good cause in Astoria
BY JESSICA MILITELLO
Members of the Astoria community
put on their best poker face for a good
cause on June 29 during the third
annual “Hold ‘em Tournament”
charity poker game held by Maria’s
Love Foundation.
The event took place at New
York Martial Arts Academy on
Broadway and had more than 60
people in attendance. The nonprofit
organization raised money toward
their mission of helping families pay
for the often overwhelming burden
of covering medical bills due to lifethreatening
illness and accidents.
The evening included food, drink
and raffle prizes. Family and friends
of both Maria’s Love and NYMAA
were also in attendance and the
event was filled with great energy
and friendly competition throughout
the tournament.
The organization’s founder, Antri
Orfanos, who lost her mother to
cancer in 2006, feels compelled to help
families in need based on her own
personal experience.
“I was young when my mom got
sick and when she passed away,”
said Orfanos. “When I got older my
dad told me how insurance wouldn’t
cover a lot of treatment because of
preexisting conditions. Things would
Photos courtesy of Antri Orfanos for Maria’s Love Foundation
cost like $100,000 and she needed a lot
of treatment and surgeries.”
Maria’s Love Foundation is a
501(c)(3) non-profit organization
that was started in May 2014. It was
named in honor of Orfanos’ mother,
Maria Papanikolaou who died in
2006 from melanoma after five years
of surgeries and treatments. Orfanos
initially became involved with
donating to charities like American
Cancer Society by participating in its
Relay for Life walk-a-thon.
But after teaming up with
NYMAA, which is owned by her
husband’s family, to do a kick-athon
to raise money, Orfanos felt
inspired to get even more involved
by starting her own non-profit. Since
then, Maria’s Love has given over
$100,000 to families in need through
the support of sponsors, donations,
and charity events, like the “Hold ‘em
Tournament.”
The idea for the event initially
came from her husband, James
Orfanos, and his friends who thought
it would be a fun event with a lighthearted
energy.
The first charity poker event did
so well that they decided to make it a
yearly event amongst others, such as
a yearly evening gala. Local residents
as well as students from NYMAA are
loyal supporters of the organization’s
poker event.
One of NYMAA’s students,
Michael Liu, made sure to support
the event especially since the nonprofit’s
mission resonated with his
everyday work.
“I work in healthcare,” said Liu.
“So when I heard about Maria’s
Love Foundation and what they do,
it only made sense to come out and
support them.”
Overall the event was an amazing
success and Maria’s Love Foundation
raised $17,585 by the end of the
evening. Aside from raising money
for the important mission of helping
people in need, Orfanos’ loves the
idea of bringing people together in
order to make a positive change.
“I like seeing everybody getting
together and having a good time,”
said Orfanos. “We have a big group of
people who support us and it’s nice to
see that.”
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