(June 18, 2020)
Acting Queens Borough President Sharon Lee has announced a partnership with the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) to donate more than 33 tons of pet food to 14 local non-profits and community-based organizations for distribution amongst Queens families in need of assistance feeding their four-legged loved ones.
The ASPCA’s generous donation of 2,520 combined bags of cat and dog food, totaling 66,900 pounds, aims to address the tide of food insecurity for families with pets — already one of the most commonly requested items at food pantries — due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Across multiple days beginning Thursday, June 18, Borough President Lee and the ASPCA will facilitate the distribution of more than 1,250 bags each of donated cat and dog food across the following local organizations, including:
- Commonpoint Queens — Sam Field Center in Little Neck
- Elmcor Youth and Adult Activities, Inc. in Corona
- First Baptist Church of East Elmhurst in East Elmhurst
- Harding Ford Vision, Inc. in Jamaica
- Hungry Monk Rescue Truck in Ridgewood
- Jamaica Community Partnership Program, a Sheltering Arms NY program, in Jamaica
- La Jornada in Flushing
- Latin American Intercultural Alliance in Richmond Hill
- New Greater Bethel Ministries in Queens Village
- NYCHA Redfern Houses Residents Council in Far Rockaway
- Project Hope Charities, Inc. in Jamaica
- Queens Community House in Flushing and Forest Hills
- RIVER FUND in Richmond Hill
- Rock Safe Streets, a Sheltering Arms NY program, in Far Rockaway
- Voces Latinas in Jackson Heights
Both the donated bags cat and dog food come in two separate sizes — 15- and 31-pound bags for cats and 28- and 40-pound bags for dogs.
RIVER FUND received the donations from the ASPCA and warehoused the food at its storage facility ahead of the June 18 distribution of the bags to the participating organizations out of its Richmond Hill headquarters.