‘Tis the season for giving back – and that’s just what local resident Sara Steinweiss is doing.
Steinweiss, a former New Utrecht High School teacher and longtime community activist is in the midst of her sixth annual gift card drive for teenagers in foster care.
“I started the event six years ago,” Steinweiss told this paper. “It was around the time that I had retired from teaching, and I’d been working with teenagers for so many years that I just knew, on that level, what happens around the holidays.”
Oftentimes, she said, teenagers in need get the short end of the stick when it comes to holiday drives.
“You know, everyone does toy drives, but a lot of the time, the teens are really left out,” she said. “So I spoke to a few of my friends and said, ‘Let’s get some gift cards.’”
Today, the drive — which typically brings in over $1,000 worth of cards — is a force to be reckoned with.
“For years I’ve been working with the Angel Guardian Home, and Mercy First,” Steinweiss said, stressing that, even though the offices are now closed at the deep-rooted Dyker Heights facility, Mercy First is still in operation and currently serves over 200 teenagers in foster homes.
Popular donations, she said, include gift cards to CVS, Walgreens, Dunkin Donuts and even the movies.
“Every year it gets bigger and bigger,” she went on, noting that this year’s drive will be accompanied by its own event called Karaoke for a Cause, where residents can come, party for a purpose, enjoy some drink specials and donate some gift cards. “For me, it’s about everybody doing a little something. You can’t always do everything, and, with the state all of our lives are in right now, it’s nice to just think about somebody else – even for a split moment.”
Karaoke for a Cause will take place on Thursday, December 1 from 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. at Xin Chinese Restaurant (8324 Third Avenue). Those who cannot attend but still want to contribute are urged to send their gift cards to Steinweiss’ P.O. Box (P.O. BOX 40229, Brooklyn, NY 11204).
Steinweiss is accepting donations now through Sunday, December 4. She will be bringing donations to Mercy First on Wednesday, December 7.
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MercyFirst is so very grateful for all the individuals, companies and groups that step up to make this holiday season a full and joyous one for our children and youth. Sara Steinweiss and all her friends are one example of how the community gets involved and helps out. Many thanks!