Newburgh Free Academy Honored By Safe Homes of Orange County
Newburgh Free Academy students, along with teachers Karen Stafford and Chris Cotton, were honored recently for NFA’s philanthropic giving to support the efforts of Safe Homes of Orange County. Students were presented with the Hope Award on Thursday, October 27, 2011 during the Safe Homes’ 25th Anniversary Celebration of Hope Dinner held at the Falkirk Estate & Country Club.
Each year, Newburgh Free Academy students hold a food drive to support the Safe Homes Food Pantry, and collect donations to spread holiday cheer to Safe Homes families and children. This past spring, over 200 baskets were stuffed with small gifts and necessities for Safe Homes recipients as part of the new initiative Emma’s Baskets thanks to the generosity of NFA students and staff.
According to Stafford, “The names of the programs, Emma's Food Drive, Emma’s Stockings, and now Emma’s Baskets, were named in honor of my grandmother Emma Cocchia who was a great humanitarian in the Newburgh area. We do this in her memory.”
Safe Homes of Orange County Executive Director Kellyann Kostyal-Larrier explains that the generosity of the Newburgh students and staff continues to act as a channel for compassion to others.
“For so many reasons honoring Newburgh Free Academy this year was more than appropriate, but this partnerships transcends generations. NFA gives us hope that there will be young adults that will embark on this world and understand that there are issues, movements, bigger than an individual. Safe Homes is grateful for the leadership from the faculty of NFA and the amazing youth they are inspiring for helping so many victims of domestic violence,” explained Kostyal-Larrier.
