Our offices are comprised of individuals who believe in the importance of giving back, both locally and on a broader scale. We have recently announced our successful campaign to raise funds for the nonprofit humanitarian organization AmeriCares in its work to deliver assistance programs and emergency medical aid for people in need all across the globe. We are just as dedicated to providing support to significant organizations that operate in our local communities—organizations like HOPE Community Services, based in New Rochelle, New York. Now we are pleased that the efforts of two of our employees have been recognized by this important organization.
At a recent gala event commemorating its 27th anniversary, HOPE Community Services honored our very own Ali Greene, Regional Marketing Manager, and Ginny Anderson, Senior Mortgage Consultant. These two Julia B. Fee Sotheby’s International Realty staff members were presented with the Spirit of Excellence Award for their commitment to supporting HOPE in all of their humanitarian work, and we couldn’t be more proud.
The largest soup kitchen and food pantry in Westchester County, HOPE Community Services was originally founded in 1984 to ensure that local low-income families had access to food. Over time, the agency recognized that it could offer much more to these people, and became a provider of everything from clothes and emotional support to immigration services and help with language skills. In addition, the organization launched a Community Outreach/Self-Sufficiency Program (SSP) in order to provide help to those looking for employment, health care, entitlements and substance abuse treatment. In the course of the past year, 390,000 meals were made available through HOPE, and SSP provided aid to more than 1,400 households. HOPE’s services have only become more in demand in recent times, with the growing numbers of families who have recently lost unemployment benefits or full-time work hours, as well as the increasing population of women with children and elderly individuals who are coping with fixed incomes.
With Ali Greene and Ginny Anderson spearheading our efforts to provide support to HOPE, our agents also donate both their money and their time on a regular basis. They have helped to package foods for the pantry to give out to people in the community, collected food at our offices for donating to the pantry, and volunteered at the soup kitchen, serving meals to those in need. We also raise money for our agents to use to pick up groceries on their way to the kitchen for preparing that evening’s meal. While we remain deeply involved with HOPE all year, we are particularly proud that for the past two years we have been able to deliver turkeys to local families for Thanksgiving.
The gala event took place at New Rochelle’s Beckwith Pointe Club on January 24. New York Yankee Mariano Rivera and his wife, Pastor Clara Rivera, were in attendance, and were honored with the Mary Lou McNaney Founder’s Award. A Commitment to Service Award was presented to the Aronin Famiy. We congratulate them all for receiving this recognition and for their dedication to HOPE Community Services.
