The county is once again teaming up with Volunteer New York! and sponsor Robison Oil for its 13th annual “9/11: Serve + Remember” community-wide day of service, with events running through 9/11 Day on Monday. Volunteer New York! Executive Director Jeannette Gisbert detailed this year’s lineup at the Westchester County office in White Plains. In addition to addressing local issues like litter and food insecurity, she says the weekend helps preserve a sense of unity felt by the county in the aftermath of the 2001 attacks.
"As we get further and further away from the tragic day in 2001, fewer will remember the spirit of unity, togetherness, and compassion that arose in the immediate aftermath of that tragedy," says Gisbert. "And so, '9/11 Serve + Remember' is an opportunity. An opportunity to pause and do a good deed, to make a difference, to remember the power of what we can do together."
Westchester County lost more than 100 residents and 12 former residents in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, according to the county. Gisbert says 9/11 Day was created in 2002 as a way to help Americans honor those lost by helping their communities, and has since become the country’s largest day of charitable service.
Westchester County will be starting the party early on Friday with a “Feed the Funnel” campaign at the Monroe College campus in New Rochelle. Feeding Westchester’s Senior Director of Corporate, Foundation, and Community Elizabeth Vieselmeyer says volunteers will be packing 50,000 meals for New Rochelle families in need – not just for 9/11 Day, but for Hunger Action Month. She says volunteers must be at least 18 years old (or 16-17 years old with an adult and a signed youth waiver), wear a hair net, leave their jewelry at home, and be ready to stand as needed.
"Our volunteers are gonna be helping us add ingredients to meal bags. They'll be helping weigh those bags to ensure accuracy, sealing the bags and placing them in boxes, as well as refilling supplies," she explains. "One of our largest communities that we serve is New Rochelle, so these meals will be vital for that project, and it's a really great way to get involved."
Vieselmeyer says Feeding Westchester also has a wealth of other events and fundraisers sprinkled across the weekend for Hunger Action Month, including Sunday’s “Lighthouse Swim” across the Hudson River from Nyack to Sleepy Hollow.
On Saturday, most of the “Serve + Remember” lineup has residents getting outdoors. In Croton-on-Hudson, crews will be cleaning the beach and picking up litter at Croton Point Park starting at 10 a.m. Volunteers at Our New Way Garden in Harrison will help harvest the farm and prepare it for the fall season by removing invasive species and doing some planting – again, starting at 10 a.m. And the Westchester Parks Foundation is still looking for volunteers to identify and cut invasive plant species at Tibbetts Brook Park in Yonkers, as the Foundation prepares to plant new trees.
Mary Benjamin is the Foundation’s manager of volunteer programs.
"This will help increase the biodiversity of the area and bring some much-needed wildlife to Tibbets Brook Park for visitors to enjoy for generations," says Benjamin.
Benjamin adds volunteers should dress for the weather, wear close-toed shoes, and bring a water bottle. Crews will meet at the park at 10 a.m.
While Sunday is a rest day, Monday is when things kick off in full-force at the County Center Hub in White Plains. Gisbert says volunteers will be able to make blankets for children in hospitals, create cards for the troops, assemble laundry sachets for families in need, learn CPR, and donate blood with the New York Blood Center.
Christine Foran is the New York Blood Center’s director of corporate and community events. She says those interested in donating blood should come with their ID – remember to eat and drink beforehand – and be prepared to undergo a short questionnaire and medical evaluation. She says the Center is in need of all blood types, and they still have plenty of appointments available.
"And what we really need right now, too, are platelet donations," Foran adds. "Platelets are the clotting factor in your blood. So somebody can go into a donor center and actually just donate platelets, versus donating whole blood, and that'll help cancer patients and accident victims. So, if somebody could be a platelet donor, we really need that right now, too."
All of Monday’s events get going at noon with the exception of the blood drive, which will run from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. All participants must register in advance at the Volunteer New York! website – and spots are going fast. You can find the full schedule and a link to register here.
