8 DECEMBER 10, 2020 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Maspeth advocate hosts online fundraisers for nonprofi t
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
AACEVEDO@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Catering for the Homeless
(CFTH), a local nonprofit working
to collect ready-made meals,
fresh produce and non-perishable
items to feed people experiencing
homelessness and food insecurity,
is in need of donations to continue
their work.
For four years, CFTH, founded
by Maspeth advocate Crystal Wolfe,
has served more than 800,000 meals,
50,000 non-perishable food items,
50,000 toiletries, 20,000 clothing
items and 20,000 socks throughout
New York City, but mainly in
Queens.
CFTH has more than 120 partners,
including churches, food pantries,
homeless shelters and other nonprofits.
Since March, CFTH has
helped restock more than 30 food
pantries across Queens, thanks to
some donations from community
members and small grants. However,
those funds are now gone, leaving
Wolfe to make up for it with her own
personal money.
“We desperately need donations
in order to continue and expand our
efforts,” Wolfe wrote.
Wolfe expects to serve a minimum
of 30,000 meals per week in
2021. She also expects to procure at
least 10,000 socks for the homeless,
150,000 non-perishable food items
and hundreds of thousands of fresh
produce.
Crystal Wolfe is the founder and president of Catering for the Homeless. Photo courtesy of Crystal Wolfe
To continue their efforts, CFTH is
hosting an online fundraiser where
donors can bid on one-of-a-kind celebrity
items and vacation getaways,
which ends on Dec. 18.
They also have an ongoing Go-
FundMe campaign to help feed individuals
and families most impacted
by the COVID-19 pandemic.
CFTH will use part of the donations
to develop their website so
they can expand their program and
provide even more meals to New
Yorkers in need. Eventually, Wolfe
hopes to grow the nonprofit to serve
more people on a national scale.
Wolfe believes hunger can be
solved by redistributing what is now
considered food waste — New York
state generates more than 250,000
tons of food waste and food scraps
per year, according to the Department
of Environmental Conservation.
She’s been advocating for the
New York City Department of Education,
in particular, to get on board
with her and encourage schools to
distribute their excess food.
“There is food going to waste in
every town in America that no one
needs to go hungry,” Wolfe said.
“Getting this food excess to those
who need it can solve, or greatly
reduce, this hunger crisis.”
For more information, visit www.
cateringforthehomeless.com.
New PSA warns about dangers of COVID-19 ‘living room spread’
BY EMILY DAVENPORT
EDAVENPORT@QNS.COM
@QNS
Just when you thought it was safe
to be in your living room, Governor
Andrew Cuomo’s latest ad
campaign implies that no place is safe
from COVID-19.
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced
the release of a new PSA that
highlights the dangers of COVID-19
“living room spread.” According to
contract tracing data, 70 percent of
new COVID-19 cases are originating
from households and small gatherings.
The PSA encourages New Yorkers
to avoid gatherings to keep themselves
and their loved ones safe.
“It’s not just mass gatherings
causing the spread anymore. The
virus is now literally spreading in
households,” said Cuomo. “When you
eliminate other options for socialization,
people will shift their behavior
and begin joining together in their
homes. We are seeing the impacts of
that now, with a signifi cant number
of cases originating in households
and small gatherings. I know you
may think, ‘I’m in my house with my
family and with my friends so this is
my safe zone,’ but that just is simply
not the case anymore. As we move
forward into the winter, addressing
living room spread will be one of the
biggest challenges in the fi ght against
COVID-19, and we can do it, but only
if New Yorkers stay smart.”
Though New York continues to
maintain one of the lowest infection
rates compared to other states across
the nation, Cuomo says that avoiding
small gatherings and practicing safe
behaviors like wearing masks, washing
hands and socially distancing, is
as important as ever as COVID-19
cases continue to rise nationally.
Earlier this week, Cuomo announced
the state’s plan for combating
COVID-19 this winter. The plan,
which was developed with global
public health experts, local governments
and other stakeholders, builds
off the lessons learned during the
past nine months to anticipate and
prepare for an expected increase in
COVID cases and hospitalizations
over the holiday season.
The plan consists of fi ve targeted
strategies focused on stopping the
spread while boosting hospital
preparedness, including strengthening
the micro-cluster strategy
while managing hospital capacity to
enhance and equalize care; increasing
and balancing testing resources
and availability; keeping schools
open safely; preventing the viral
spread from small gatherings; and
operationalize an equitable and safe
vaccination program.
Photo Getty Images
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