'Taste of Mount Vernon' Scheduled for Thursday

Community Services Associates hopes to raise money by doing what it knows best—feeding the hungry.

The second annual "Taste of Mount Vernon" kicks-off Thursday in The Soup Kitchen at the Sacred Heart Church, located in Mount Vernon. The event will give people the chance to sample fare from local restaurants in the Mount Vernon area. Available tastings will range from Asian to soul food.

"It's a good way for people to find out about some of the restaurants in the area," said Jared Apuzzo, volunteer coordinator for Community Services Associates. "They may find something they didn't even know existed."

Businesses expected to participate in the event include: Artuso’s Bakery, Azul Restaurant, The Bayou Restaurant, BBQ Rib House, Buona Sera, Colonial Liquors, Dazzles, Dunkin Donuts, Fleetwood Bakery, Fleetwood Deli Café, Gloria’s Bakery, Joe’s Fleetwood Pizzeria, Phil’s Meat & Grocery, Poppy’s Deli, Spring Asian and Yvonne House of Soul.

More importantly, the event will help Community Service Associates continue its mission of feeding the hungry through its soup kitchen, which serves about 72,000 meals a year. Apuzzo said the organization wants to raise $25,000 Thursday.

"It's extremely important for us because we are a nonprofit and all the money we get is used to run our program," Apuzzo said. "We receive a little money from the city and we get the occasional grant, but most of the money we receive comes from donations."

Apuzzo said the soup kitchen has seen a large increase in the number of people it serves the past two years. .

"We've seen an increase in the number of woman and families," Apuzzo said. "We have clients who are working, but have a low income. A lot of our clients aren't homeless."

About 100 people attended the event last year. Apuzzo hopes the success of last year's event and word of mouth brings more people on Thursday.

Although the event requires a minimum donation of $50 to attend, Apuzzo said people are welcome to donate more.

“We’ve had some people give anonymous donations for as much as $10,000,” Apuzzo said. “But that doesn’t happen all the time.”

The "Taste of Mount Vernon" will take place Thursday, Oct. 6 in The Soup Kitchen at Sacred Heart Church, located on 115 South 5th Ave. Mount Vernon, NY. A minimum donation of $50 is required to attend. Call Roberta or Jared at (914) 668-1428 to RSVP or send and e-mail to jaredapuzzo@hotmail.com.

“Like” Pelham Patch on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.