Parties in Need of Pizza |
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These community shelters will host Parties of Hope in June 2017 and still need pizzeria sponsors. Contact Rebecca Ruttle at A Slice of Hope to participate! June 19 June 20 June 21 June 22 June 24 June 26 June 27 June 30 Dates to be Determined |
The New York-based nonprofit A Slice of Hope will once again partner with pizzerias nationwide this month to lift spirits and combat hunger during A Slice of Hope Week, June 19 to 25. Here’s everything you need to know about this heartwarming cause—and how you can help out and make a difference in your own community
Confessions of a Hope Fiend
Born in poverty-stricken Mumbai and raised on the gritty streets of the Bronx, actor Obaid Kadwani, founder of A Slice of Hope, has seen the worst the world has to offer—and has never given up hope. The tall, charismatic Kadwani founded A Slice of Hope with the belief that “nothing feeds the body and energizes the spirit” like pizza, the ultimate sharable food. Since 2007, his organization has worked with pizzerias, including hometown independents and chains, to throw hundreds of pizza parties at homeless shelters, women’s shelters, soup kitchens and food banks around the country. “A kind word, a gentle touch, a caring smile can make a person under stress want to fight on,” Kadwani says. “We create a vehicle to energize one person in one moment on one day.”
How to Sponsor a Party
If you’re a pizzeria owner or operator, you can donate free or discounted food to A Slice of Hope parties already being planned in your community (see the list on page 66). If no parties are in the works in your town, you can work with Kadwani’s group to organize your own event at a local shelter or food bank. To volunteer, visit asliceofhope.org or contact Rebecca Ruttle at rebecca@asliceofhope.org or 937-219-8618.
Host a Fundraiser for A Slice of Hope
In addition to sponsoring parties at local shelters, pizzeria owners can support A Slice of Hope by hosting fundraisers throughout June or any other time of the year. Create your own A Slice of Hope event and donate a portion of the sales to A Slice of Hope or ask customers for donations. All funds will be used to help A Slice of Hope grow and reach more disadvantaged people around the country.
The Yummy Patrol
Peter Anastasi, owner of Pat’s Pizzeria in Dundalk, Maryland, geeks out over good deeds. For the third year in a row, he’ll take his team of pizza makers and servers—known as the Yummy Patrol—on a mission to feed and inspire the clients at Bea Gaddy’s Women and Children’s Shelter with A Slice of Hope pizza party. Also joining the party this time will be celebrity athletes with the Baltimore Ravens, Anastasi says. “Our family at Pat’s Pizzeria looks forward to this amazing event every year,” he adds. “We love the smiles and the excitement our pizza brings to the kids. The best part is seeing how the community comes together to make a huge difference in these families’ lives. You can really feel the love in the air.”
