SARATOGA SPRINGS – Within the center of Longfellows banquet hall is an outstretched tree which has been carefully wrapped in thousands of soft white lights.
I can only image the countless hours, dedication and love that the community of Longfellows put into this tree, bringing out the trees natural glow of beauty, life and honor in the midst of a banquet hall.
The parallels to the Brighter Days Gala are not lost on me.
Shelters of Saratoga focuses on the 3 H’s,
Help
Hope
Humanity
This Brighter Days Gala, on Thursday, March 28, at Longfellows, wasn’t one of fan fare.
You didn’t go “to be seen,” or to take countless selfies at.
This casual, intimate party made it apparent what we were here for. To help those in our community who, at the moment, were not able to help themselves.
Please don’t get me wrong, there was plenty of food and drinks to enjoy, hellos to give and tables to sit at.
But what was clear to me was that each party goer chose to be there because of the cause.
The Brighter Days Gala was about empowering the community of Saratoga to help their neighbors who otherwise would be standing right in front of us with their lights dimmed….
{{{Editor’s Note: And when the lights dimmed, it was a pleasure to see the hard work in advocacy for a permanent solution to homelessness in Saratoga Springs honored. Shelters of Saratoga’s Help, Hope, and Humanity Award was deservedly given to two young women I admire: Robin Dalton, who has been a valued colleague and even more valued friend for some time now…
… and to Porter Haupt, now six years old and who I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know in December of 2017. Her story is one of my favorites, and you can read it HERE.
Robin and Porter’s stories and good works are inspiring to anyone – at any age! – AG}}}
************************************************************************************
Of all the events I have attended, this is the first one where the Executive Director went to each table, shaking everyone’s hand and introduced herself. That person is Karen Gregory. The Executive Director of Shelters of Saratoga for only the past 90 days.
Karen thanked me for showing my support, face to face. She saw me. During her speech she reminded the audience that homelessness doesn’t discriminate, and should not define who a person is. Their temporary lack of resources is what SOS is all about.
SOS serves 2,500 meals, and provides countless services to over 1,000 individuals per year. Jason Watkins spoke from the heart about his gratitude for SOS.
He stated, “I was in a pretty bad space. The shelter took me aside and set me up with programs that I didn’t know existed”.
He remained in the shelter for 2 months, making a quick transition. thanks to SOS, which helped him get his own housing and a new job.
It was also stated tonight that “In Saratoga we can do this, we can do this together, we can be the model city that ends homelessness. We must take what we have and give generously. Treat others as if they are ours, because they are our neighbors, community members and friends.”
In other words – Make a Brighter Day.
You can help to Make Brighter Days for everyone. Visit cyber SOS.
Mandy Weinerman
April 2, 2019
A BRIGHTER GALLERY!
