In just one year, more than 130,000 migrants have arrived in New York City to seek asylum. Many have traveled for miles and for months from South America, specifically Venezuela, to the United States.
Now in its fourteenth year, Don't Walk By continues to serve our most marginalized neighbors living on the streets. This year, with rising concerns around the Omicron variant, more changes were made to Don't Walk By.
Together with Rescue Alliance, we host Don’t Walk By every year in February, the coldest winter month. In 2022, we will still continue our annual winter outreach, but with three significant changes.
The hardships that the homeless face in my community has had a tight hold on my heart and conscience ever since I was a kid. During college and in my first few years in New York City, I had opportunities to serve or volunteer, but for many reasons, I did not commit to them.
Our first Virtual Homelessness Summit was an impactful day focused on the challenges our homeless neighbors face daily. More than 300 attendees tuned into the online Rescue Alliance event on a Saturday morning to be educated, equipped, and engaged!
For over 12 years, the Rescue Alliance has been able to positively impact the lives of our friends on the street and provide them opportunities for change. In February 2020, we saw our most successful outreach in history, but this year, our annual winter outreach changed to Pandemic Don't Walk By.
While I could tell you all about the logistics of Don't Walk By or the amazing stories of changed lives to tug on the heartstrings, I’m going to share instead why you should sign up to serve again or even for the first time.