Port Pays It Forward
Port Pays It Forward allows community members to anonymously pay it forward by feeding people in need from local restaurants through gifted certificates on Post-it Notes with a message of kindness.
PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y., Sept. 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- High school twins Kate and Alec Goodman on Long Island started a "Pay It Forward" program and social media platform to help feed their community and support local small businesses.
Kate and Alec launched their community service program in January 2021, with one of their hometown favorites, Carlo's Pizza, inspired by Italy's Caffè Sospeso which means suspended coffee. A Sospeso is a Neapolitan practice of anonymously paying for a coffee ahead for someone else in need. The brother and sister duo read about other cafes and restaurants here in the United States that have successfully applied this very concept within their communities. They decided to do the same. "With family back home in Italy, Carlo's Pizza owners, Daniel Cenatiempo and Roberto Pallagrosi, were familiar with the Sospeso and agreed to host their very own Sospeso with pizza slices,' said Alec.
Here's how it works: A slice is all it takes to make a difference.
- Customers can donate $3 to buy a slice of pizza for the next person in need;
- and when they do, they can also fill out a message of kindness on a Post-it Note and stick it on the wall for redemption.
Head to Carlo's Pizza at 109 Main Street in Port Washington, New York to pay it forward with pizza slices. Additional donations can be made to @portpaysitforward via Venmo.
Program impact: "The community has really come together," said Kate to "Give if you can. Take if you need." People have supported the initiative with $5,000 in donations (over 1,600 slices) thus far to feed the local community. Kate and Alec have already expanded their reach to feed members of many local organizations including Community Mainstreaming, The Parent Resource Center of Port Washington, Our Lady of Fatima, and Port Washington Children's Center.
This sort of goodwill reciprocity and ripple effect of kindness to help community members in need get a bite to eat has generated a real buzz, strengthening Port's sense of community and small businesses. "We can all use some kindness right about now," said Alec.
Please follow Port Pays It Forward on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
SOURCE Port Pays It Forward
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