News
February 9, 2017Unity House to Honor Three at Annual Gala
Unity House will celebrate three honorees — the Muslim Soup Kitchen Project, Grace Fellowship Church and Brad Shear, executive director of the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society — for their commitment to community service and to making the Capital Region a better place to live. The honorees have all been long-time supporters of the Troy-based human services organization and will be recognized at the “I Love Unity House Gala” on Friday, Feb. 10 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Troy.
Started in 2003 by a group of students at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the Muslim Soup Kitchen Project has grown from a small effort aimed at helping the Troy community to a nationwide network of people on a mission to feed people in need in the Capital Region. The primary goal of the project is to aid the homeless and low-income people – Muslims and non-Muslims alike – by serving them free food on a regular basis. The now 150 dedicated volunteers conduct a variety of food and clothing drives, regularly prepare and serve meals for Unity House’s meals program and help stock Unity House’s food pantry. At the center of this effort is Uzma Popal, director of the Muslim Soup Kitchen Project. She has held the unpaid position of the group since August 2014. Popal is also the Nutrition Outreach & Education Program coordinator at Unity House.
“The members of the Muslim Soup Kitchen Project are among the most generous and caring individuals who volunteer at Unity House,” said Unity House CEO Chris Burke. “We can count on them to regularly support our efforts to feed those who come here for meals, either by their donation of food or through their help making meals and serving our visitors. In fact, last year they cooked and served Christmas Dinner here so our staff could be with their families.”
Grace Fellowship’s founder, Pastor Dr. Rex Keener, is a regular Unity House volunteer who performs intake assessments of consumers at The Front Door, Unity House’s community service headquarters. Through Grace in Action, Grace Fellowship members work throughout the community providing donations of food, clothing and personal care items for those in need, including the individuals and families that served at The Front Door and at Sojourner’s Place, Unity House’s domestic violence shelter. In addition, they often serve meals in the Unity House dining room.
“Grace Fellowship members are tremendously supportive of Unity House and the poor in our community,” said Burke. “Their commitment Unity House and to help the less fortunate among us is evident and we are grateful for the support they provide us.”
As the executive director of the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society, a non-profit organization that provides shelter for lost, abused and unwanted animals, Brad Shear is a strong ally to Unity House and the individuals it helps through its domestic violence services program. Mohawk Hudson’s “Safe Haven” program shelters the pets of victims of domestic violence, providing a life-saving service since 20 percent of victims of domestic violence report the threat of harm to a beloved pet as a barrier to leaving an abusive situation. Shear’s organization works closely with Unity House’s domestic violence services team to ensure that pets are properly cared for when an abuse victim leaves a violent environment at home.
“Many of the victims who seek our help would not have the courage to do so if it were not for the Safe Haven program,” said Burke. “Brad’s support of our efforts to get these individuals away from their abusers has been tremendously helpful. Our gratitude for the work he and his organization does is immense.”
For information about reservations for the I Love Unity House Gala, call 518.274.2607, ext. 4139.
