NYCHA Gives Thanks
Thanksgiving is a time for gratitude and to share resources with our community. This year, NYCHA, resident associations, local businesses, community organizations, and elected officials came together to support NYCHA residents across the city to kick off the season of giving with donations of gift cards, turkeys, groceries, and prepared meals to ensure every family enjoys a delicious Thanksgiving meal at home.
“The holidays present an opportunity to express our gratitude for the many families and individuals who make our NYCHA community so special,” said NYCHA Chief Executive Officer Lisa Bova-Hiatt. “We thank the Public Housing Community Fund, resident leadership, and all of our partners in these distribution efforts, which will help ensure that NYCHA residents can enjoy holiday meals with their loved ones this Thanksgiving.”
Gift Cards to Residents Experiencing Gas Outages
NYCHA partnered with the Public Housing Community Fund and Perfect Gift to provide residents impacted by gas outages with gift cards that can be used towards the purchase of holiday meals for their loved ones. Each NYCHA household without gas service received a gift card valued at $15 per each household member on the lease. A total of 600 gift cards were provided to residents at 31 developments across the city, benefitting 1,200 residents.
NYCHA also provided residents of the impacted buildings with slow cookers and hot plates to assist with gas-free cooking during the outage.
Public Housing Community Fund
In addition to helping to provide gift cards, the Public Housing Community Fund also provided 1,500 turkeys to NYCHA residents in all five boroughs. The turkeys were from London Meats and were delivered to developments between November 18 and 26.
“This holiday season, the Public Housing Community Fund is honored to partner with NYCHA, resident leaders, and our generous supporters to bring joy and nourishment to over 10,000 New Yorkers across all five boroughs,” said Public Housing Community Fund Executive Director Alex Zablocki. “By distributing 1,500 turkeys and trimmings, along with gift cards for hot meals, we’re supporting public housing families to come together and celebrate a season of gratitude. These efforts embody the power of community, partnership, and care for our neighbors, reminding us that when we unite, we can make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. We are deeply grateful to our staff and partners, including Gotham Gives, the Tech: NYC Foundation, the Champlain-Hudson Power Express, and our food distributors, for their generosity and commitment to this vital initiative.”
Turkeys were provided to residents of Parkside Houses, Stapleton Houses, Manhattanville Rehab, Morris Houses, Claremont Rehab (Group 2), Patterson Houses, Castle Hill Houses, South Jamaica Houses, Astoria Houses, Roosevelt Houses, Kingsborough, Nostrand Houses, Marlboro Houses, Jackson Houses, Morrisania Air Rights, Seth Low Houses, and Richmond Terrace Houses.
Resident Association Events
Across the city, resident associations organized and volunteered to support their fellow residents by hosting turkey giveaways, grocery and meal distributions, and community events that fostered the neighborly spirit of Thanksgiving.
NYCHA partnered with resident associations in hosting food distribution events at a number of developments across the five boroughs, including Astoria Houses, Beach 41st Street-Beach Channel Drive, Castle Hill Houses, Claremont Rehab (Group 2), Howard Houses, Jackson Houses, Kingsborough Houses, Manhattanville Rehab, Marlboro Houses, Melrose Houses, Morris Houses, Nostrand Houses, Parkside Houses, Patterson Houses, Pomonok Houses, Roosevelt Houses, South Jamaica 1, Stapleton Houses, Tilden Houses, and Woodside Houses.
Resident Association Presidents Danny Barber of Jackson Houses, Tanya Pedler of Morrisania Air Rights, and Cassandra Bowlin of Melrose Houses co-hosted a distribution event at Melrose Community Center.
“Thanks to the collective efforts of the Morrisania Air Rights Houses, Andrew Jackson Houses, and Melrose Houses Resident Associations, and our incredible partners — including the Public Housing Community Fund, TEI Elevator Solutions, Zoria Housing LLC, Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson, Assembly Member Chantel Jackson, Council Member Althea Stevens, Congressman Ritchie Torres, Heart to Heart, ZBest Home Care, All Season Daycare, One Community at a Time LLC, Spare A Life, and so many others — we were able to provide over 400 turkeys and 100 oven-roasted chickens to families in need,” said Ms. Pedler. “This event, supported by NYCHA and BronxWorks, would not have been possible without the dedication of our sponsors, volunteers, and community leaders. A special thank you to Mr. Barber, President of Andrew Jackson Houses and the CCOP Chair, for partnering with us to make this giveaway a reality. Together, we brought holiday cheer and support to our neighbors. Wishing everyone a joyous and healthy holiday season!”
Events Hosted by Elected Officials
Elected officials ensured that their NYCHA constituents were cared for by coordinating food drives, distributing meals and turkeys, and offering support to those in need in the communities they serve.