'SACSS Gala a success!'

SACSS Gala 2022 was truly a smashing success and an unforgettable night!

Madhur Jaffrey, our guest of honor, lit up the stage in her inimitable way!

Ms. Jaffrey said that SACSS does more than provide groceries via its food pantry, it provides “comfort to the soul” through its focus on culturally palatable food.

Honorees and internationally-acclaimed culinary duo of Unapologetic Foods, Chef Chintan Pandya and Roni Mazumdar bowled us over with their presence and offered an extraordinary eleventh-hour auction item — dinner prepared by Chef Chintan Pandya and Chef Vijay Kumar for a party of ten at the home of the highest bidder!

Yes, that happened too.

Restaurateur Roni Mazumdar sent the message to all immigrants, saying,“It’s okay to be who you are,” citing it as part of his approach.

Chef Chintan Pandya spoke about following the path blazed by Ms. Jaffrey, Chef Floyd Cardoz, and America’s first Michelin Starred Indian Chef Hemant Mathur, who catered the event!

Of course, Congresswoman Grace Meng’s words humbled and inspired us. In her speech accepting her award, Congresswoman Meng spoke of how SACSS has the distinction of not only serving thousands of people with compassion, but by providing a comforting space through its permanent community center which opened last year. 

And, Honoree Adnan Durrani moved us with his praise for our work! Mr. Durrani described his own experiences as an immigrant, and encouraged people to support SACSS because of the growing needs the organization is meeting, noting that,“SACSS has increased its services by 600% from the pre-pandemic era.”

Mr. Durrani was presented with SACSS’ 2022 Pioneer in #FoodYouWant Award by Faran Tahir whose remarks about his experience as an immigrant also were so heartfelt. We appreciated their presence and thank them both!

We thank other special guests who attended and gave in so many other was, including Councilmember Sandra Ung for her wonderful remarks and for presenting Congresswoman Grace Meng with our Gala 2022 SACSS #CommunityTrailblazer Award. And, we thank Councilmembers Shekar Krishnan and Linda Lee for their presence and their continued support of SACSS.

We extend our immense gratitude to South Asian digital media stars, Hena Doba and Sree Sreenivasan for co-emceeing the Gala, which was attended by public officials and diplomats, including Acting Consul General of Nepal, Bishnu Prasad Gautam, and Consul General of Bangladesh, Mohammad Monirul Islam.

We thank The New York Kathak Dance Company whose performance lit up our night and warmed our hearts, and DJ Rekha for rocking the house in a way only they can!

Last but not least, SACSS sends out a very special Thank You to all who contributed to our Gala 2022 Auction:

• Chintan Pandya & Roni Mazumdar, Unapologetic Foods
• Christopher Hyland & Constantino Castellano Christopher Hyland Inc.
• Hena Doba, Cheddar TV
• Madhur Jaffrey
• Anu Bhat, The Rural Painter
• TK Sarasvathy, The Bhojan Art

Last but not least, a HUGE THANKS to all of SACSS Gala 2022 “Coming Together, Striving Forward” generous sponsors:

TRAILBLAZER SPONSORS
– Guru Krupa Foundation Inc
– Michael Becker and Tee Scatuorchio
– Ramesh and Kalpana Bhatia Family Foundation

CHANGEMAKER SPONSORS
– Christopher Hyland

ADVOCATE SPONSORS
– Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC)
– Francesa Gany
– Rekha and Ramesh Gupta
– Shummi and Shikha Jindal

GALA SUPPORTERS
– Ranu Boppana
– Hena Doba
– Adnan Durrani
– Mysore Gandhi
– Anjali Maniam
– Mamta Prakash
– Devi Ramchandran
– Runi Mukherji-Ratnam / Basu Ratnam
– Swarna Shah
– Navina Sitaram

COMMUNITY SPONSORS
– John Albert
– Canopy Biopharma: Biologics Development Consultants
– Community Service Society of New York (CSS)
– Vijay Dandapani
– Binodh DeSilva
– Driscoll Foods
– India Home
– TakeTwo Services

We thank everyone who joined us last night and gave in so many other ways. And, we extend our love and gratitude to everyone who worked behind the scenes to make Gala 2022 a remarkable evening to remember!

We are beyond appreciative.

We also thank each and every one of you who has been with SACSS on our 22-year long journey and will be with us as we strive forward. We especially thank our community for their ongoing faith in SACSS – we are in this work together!

Lastly, I don’t often get to do this, but it is a great pleasure to work with SACSS board and staff – and I thank them for all their hard work – not just at this event, but throughout the year.