Officers of the Govt Committee of Grand Council share Thanksgiving meal.
Photograph by Nelson A. King
As is customary for the final three a long time, the Brooklyn District Grand Lodge of Brooklyn-headquartered Grand Council of the Unbiased United Order of Mechanics, Pleasant Society of North, Central and South America, Islands of the Seas and the Complete Western Hemisphere, Inc., identified by the abbreviation IUOM, FSWH, Inc., on Thursday, Thanksgiving Day, offered heat meals and clothes to over 350 homeless folks and members of the neighborhood.
Officers of the Govt Committee of Grand Council informed Caribbean Life, at IUOM’s headquarters, on Putnam Avenue within the Bedford-Stuyvesant part of Brooklyn, that most of the folks fed have been members of the encircling communities, in addition to many Senegalese nationals, housed on the close by Bedford Armory.
Panamanian-born Hon. Orlando Maxwell, chair of the Thanksgiving Day Committee, stated that Guyanese-born Hon. Myrthland Ince, district grand grasp for Brooklyn District Grand Lodge, assigned him to spearhead the committee. Ince welcomed and thanked attendees and volunteers.
“It’s a pleasure to get this carried out,” Maxwell informed Caribbean Life. “It’s going glorious; individuals are popping out. To date, so good, and we thank God for that.”
IUOM’s Deputy Grand Grasp, the Rt. Hon. Glenver R. Jones – who represented his Jamaican-born compatriot, the Most Worshipful Grand Grasp, the Rt. Hon. Errol G. Collins – stated that “even within the pandemic, members of the Brooklyn District Grand Lodge discover means to do that.
“I wish to let you know thanks,” stated Jones in a short handle to members of the Committee and volunteers at IOUM’s headquarters.
“We’d like extra months to eat what we’ve got right here,” he added, referring to the ready, heat dwelling prepare dinner meals, and wishing members, volunteers and patrons a Glad Thanksgiving.
Sis. Hyacinth Robinson-Goldson, IUOM’s Jamaican-born neighborhood liaison, stated that the annual occasion is the brainchild of the late Trinidadian-born Venerable Previous Grand Grasp Ancil Harding.
“Thanksgiving is a time when households come collectively to rejoice and provides thanks, and this is among the occasions the place members of the Order come collectively as one household to present again and welcome those that come and obtain a tasty home-cooked meal, or a heat coat with a smile of hope,” she informed Caribbean Life.
Robinson-Goldson stated that Harding’s imaginative and prescient “has been stored alive by the members and volunteers, who proceed to present their time, their donations and contribution to ensure the success of this necessary neighborhood challenge.
“It’s so gratifying to see that this custom has continued for over 30 years below successive management,” she added.
Vincentian The Rt. Hon. Casper Edwards, a member of the Grand Council, additionally informed Caribbean Life that Harding’s youngsters and grandchildren are nonetheless volunteering, amongst others, to feed the homeless on Thanksgiving Day.
“It’s a large scope of members of the neighborhood who come out to assist,” he stated. “It has modified a bit, however we nonetheless have it going.
“It’s been profitable through the years, and we wish to inform the neighborhood that that is what we do,” Edwards added.
Davina Perez, the daughter of Panamanian-born the Rt. Hon. Cecelio Leacock, former government grand secretary of the Order, stated she has been volunteering to serve Thanksgiving meals for the previous 10 years.
She informed Caribbean Life that she brings volunteers to the Mechanics’ headquarters yearly “to allow them to see what it’s like to present again,” thanking Sis. Shirley Camino, a Trinidadian-born member of the Committee, for holding her knowledgeable concerning the annual occasion.
As in earlier years, Perez introduced alongside Howard Collins, a Brooklyn resident with Panamanian roots, to assist in feeding the homeless.
“It’s a privilege,” Collins stated.
