38 DECEMBER 16, 2021 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Send your wish into the new year
Queens organization teams up with food pantry for children’s toy and coat drive
BY BENEDETTA TOMMASELLI
EDITORIAL@QNS.COM
@QNS
This holiday season, Senator Joseph
Addabbo Jr. is partnering
with Angels 4 Autism and the
Sacred Heart Food Pantry for a coat
and toy drive to benefi t children in
the Glendale community.
The coat and toy drive will run
through Monday, Dec. 20, which will
give organizers time to wrap and display
the toys and coats before Sacred
Heart distributes them to families in
need.
The organizations will accept any
donations from individuals interested
in the cause. Donations can be dropped
directly to the Sacred Heart Food Pantry,
located at 77-05 84th St. in Glendale
by using the Covenant Yard on 77th
Street; to the Angels 4 Autism offi ce at
71-19 80th St. located inside Atlas Park
Mall or to Addabbo’s Middle Village
Offi ce located at 66-85 73rd Pl.
“It is disheartening to see a child go
without a coat during the cold winter
months, especially as a parent myself,
so I am proud to be a partner and open
up my offi ce as a drop-off location for
this event,” Addabbo said. “And what
could be better than giving a child a
coat for the winter? Also donating a toy
they can play with on Christmas Day. I
have done several food drives with the
Sacred Heart Food Pantry, and it is an
amazing organization with even better
people that help the needy of the community
all year round. I am grateful
that Angels 4 Autism reached out to
my offi ce and off ered me a partnership
in this event and the chance to help
some kids this holiday season.”
Angels 4 Autism is organized by
the United States Speciality Sports
Association (USSSA) with the purpose
to raise autism awareness. To raise
awareness within the communities,
Angels 4 Autism hosts a series of
athletic events with the expected participation
exceeding 75,000 players,
fans, coaches, parents, umpires and
representatives from the local autism
community in these locations. They
are dedicated in supporting inclusiveness
and fi nancial assistance to anyone
who struggles with autism.
“We have all been through so much
over the last two years, but we still
have a lot to be grateful for,” said Denny
Flores of Angels 4 Autism. “This
holiday season, we hope to spread the
love and help people of our communities,
especially the children in need.”
The Sacred Heart Church in Glendale
established the Sacred Heart
Food Pantry in 1992 as a resource
for parishioners and residents of
the community to supplement much
needed food items for families who
need assistance.
BY AIDAN SEIDEN
EDITORIAL@QNS.COM
@QNS
New Yorkers everywhere were
disheartened to ring in the
year 2021 with minimal festivities
and an anticlimactic virtual
ball drop because of COVID-19. This
year, however, the celebration will
return at “full strength,” according
to a mid-November statement by
outgoing Mayor Bill de Blasio, and
festivities will include the reintroduction
of The Times Square New
Year’s Eve Wishing Wall.
The Wall was officially unveiled
on Dec. 2, along with new COVID-19
friendly modifications, courtesy
of The Times Square Alliance and
Countdown Entertainment, as well
as presenting sponsor Planet Fitness.
As people ponder their New Year’s
resolutions, The Wall allows visitors
from around the world to be directly
involved in the momentous occasion.
Simply submit your resolution or
“wish,” and it will be copied onto
pieces of confetti and dropped from
the sky at midnight in Times Square
on New Year’s Eve.
“Submitting a confetti wish gives
everyone the ability to be part of the
magic that happens on New Year’s
Eve in Times Square,” said Jeffrey
Straus, president of Countdown
Entertainment.
From now until Dec. 28, you can
submit your resolutions at one of
Times Square’s Broadway plazas
between 42nd and 47th streets,
and join the other 3,000 pounds of
confetti wishes. The submission
area will also be equipped with hand
sanitizer and face masks in order to
maintain a safe environment, according
to Times Square New Year’s
Eve.
However, if leaving the comfort
of your home is deterring you from
partaking in this spectacular holiday
celebration, you now have the
option of submitting your wishes
online at TSQ.org/Wish or Planet-
Fitness.com/confettiwishes, or even
on Twitter and Instagram with the
hashtag #ConfettiWish.
“The new year is a time for people
to come together and look ahead
with hope for a better future,” said
Tom Harris, president of the Times
Square Alliance. The spectacle of
the confetti, Harris believes, will
spark “positivity and joy” in those
watching at home or in person in
Times Square, encouraging these
sentiments to carry over into the
new year.
Another addition to the eagerly
awaited, famously frigid, celebration
this year, is that it will also
include a “virtual multimedia experience”
via the VYNE app, the Times
Square New Year’s Eve team said.
The event will be hosted by Jameston,
the owner of One Times Square.
Individuals from everywhere in
the world can access the VYNE app
on their smart devices, which will
allow them to digitally experience
the Times Square festivities, while
also playing games and watching the
New Year’s Eve events live.
To make up for the scaled-down
celebration from last year, why not
start 2022 off by becoming part of
New York City history? When the
clock strikes midnight on New Year’s
Eve, your wishes for the upcoming
year will be unleashed into the
cheering streets of Manhattan.
“We will all watch with amazement
as a blizzard of confetti blankets the
sky filled with the hopes and dreams
of people from around the world,”
Strauss said.
Photo via Getty Images
HOLIDAYS
Photo courtesy of: Countdown Entertainment
/Wish
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