GROC News

Friends,

Life is Good!

On the first day of camp, I bent down to tie one of our campers’ sneakers and noticed they were a few sizes too big for her. The sneakers were clean, and she had a nice pair of socks on. Then I spotted the “P2” written on the side of the shoe and realized they were one of the pairs donated to our clothing pantry just a few days earlier.

All of the girls’ sneakers had that same “P2” marking—probably the donor’s daughter’s initials. Moments like that remind me just how important—and how needed—our donated clothing is for the families we serve.

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Thank you to everyone who supported our Summer Camp Golf Outing.
As anyone who plans an outdoor event in mid-May knows, success often depends on the weather, and once again we were blessed with a beautiful day. With 30 foursomes participating and an additional 43 guests joining us for dinner, it was truly a wonderful event. We are deeply grateful for your generosity and support.

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Friends,

What a Monday!

First, we received 40,000 pounds — 20 pallets — of much-needed food from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: a full tractor-trailer of food. With the help of 20 missionaries, we were able to move all of the food into our containers and Outreach building using a bucket brigade. This food will help us feed the 430 families — or 1,376 people — we support each month on average.

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Friends,

If you’re planning your second, third, or even fourth wedding, I highly recommend booking a Monday night when our Soccer Clinic is scheduled—we’ve had perfect weather for it year after year! Despite how cold, rainy, and windy this spring has been, something special seems to happen when the first players arrive at Wyandanch Park. The wind settles, the sun breaks through, and it warms up just enough to create ideal soccer conditions. To show you how important this soccer clinic is to these children of Wyandanch – a grandmother told me her 11 year old girl only wants goalie gloves for the birthday (we bought them for her), and another 12 year old girl asked her mother for cleats for her birthday. Mom went to a second hand store and bought a pair for $6.00, and put on new laces, her daughter was thrilled to receive them. These are our children.

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Friends,

On Holy Saturday, for the first-ever OLMM Stations of the Cross prayer walk through the streets of Wyandanch, I had the opportunity to introduce Suffolk County Police Sergeant Matthew Colao to Father John.

Sergeant Colao shared that he would lead the procession and the eight sector cars would block traffic as hundreds of adults and children walked through the streets of Wyandanch in prayer. Many in this community—even those who are documented—often feel uneasy going to places like the grocery store or Walmart for fear of being detained. Yet on this day, they felt safe, supported, and joyful praying openly in public.

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Friends,

I finally put my favorite snow shovel back in the shed—hopefully for the rest of the year!

This is the 12th year the Outreach Center will host our joint 1st Precinct / PAL / Outreach Center Spring Soccer Clinic.

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“Mr. Joe, can I take a sandwich and an apple home for my mother and brother?”

We maintain an ever-increasing list of children who are given food to take home — not just for nourishment, but for dignity.

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A glimpse into the days before Christmas:

Tuesday Morning — Starting at Dawn

As I entered the church parking lot on the morning of our Christmas distribution, it was 19 degrees, but the sun was out and there was no wind. I felt ready for our drive-through distribution. I knew that, similar to our Thanksgiving distribution day, by the end of the night, we would distribute turkeys and generous food baskets donated by St. Anne’s to hundreds of families, singles, and seniors.

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Friends,

If you have a few minutes, please take a look at the News Channel 12 story and meet our Markus, who runs our food pantry and spoke on behalf of the Outreach.

https://longisland.news12.com/li-nonprofits-see-large-spike-in-requests-for-food-assistance

On Wednesday, Cecilia Dowd and her crew from News Channel 12 visited the Outreach to report on the sharp rise in new food requests due to the ongoing SNAP issue.

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Dear Friends,

Earlier today, a woman came into the Outreach Center with her 5-year-old daughter; the little girl wore one black shoe on one foot and a blue sneaker on the other. While Mom was being interviewed, our volunteers brought her daughter to the clothing pantry and found her a warm winter jacket, new sneakers, and clothes for both her and her mother.

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