By CECILIA OLOGUNAGBA

A Nigerian Church in New York, Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), under Goke Food Pantry, has distributed over 750 turkeys and food items to some families to celebrate Thanksgiving Day.

Thanksgiving Day, celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November, is an annual national holiday in the United States to celebrate the harvest and other blessings of the past year.

In a statement by Deacon Babatunde Adebiyi, Goke Food pantry’s coordinator, in New York, said the Church located at 622 Cortelyou Road, Brooklyn, had kept the tradition of supporting families for Thanksgiving for over 10 years.

“Today we distributed about 750 turkeys but we wish we could share more. The most important thing is that no one left empty handed and that makes us happy.

“We appreciate the support of our community partners and Taptap Send and hope to continue serving Brooklyn Community for years to come,” Adebiyi said.

Led by Pastor Timothy Famojuro, the Goke Food Pantry has been operating for over 10 years and serves about 15,000 families every month. This year, the food pantry was able to share over 750 families with turkey and food items to celebrate Thanksgiving.

“We have been serving the community for over 10 years. We are honored to be able to serve our community here in Brooklyn.

“We often read a lot about Nigerians doing well in the Diaspora that is why it is so important for us to give back to our communities,” the statement quoted Famojuro as saying.

Similarly, the statement quoted Deaconess Obadina, the pantry’s general secretary as saying, “We appreciate all the support we have received over the years from our staff, volunteers and community members.

“We are always seeking support so that we can keep serving our community.”

According to the statement, volunteers, Director of Faith community for the Brooklyn Borough office, Rev. Zac, also assisted volunteers.

Money transfer company, Taptap Send, along with community partners, Organisation for the Advancement of Nigerians (OAN), and the Ajid Foundation were also present to support the efforts of Goke Food Pantry.

“Taptap Send is a community driven company; supporting efforts such as these is ingrained in our DNA.

“We think it is important to support the communities we serve internationally in our receiving countries as well as our communities in the diaspora,” the statement also quoted Olayinka Sarayi, U.S.-Nigeria markets coordinator for Taptap Send, as saying.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Goke Food Pantry (GEP) is named after the late Rev. Dr. Adegoke Oyedeji, and it opened its doors to serve the Kensington community of Brooklyn on June 8, 2013.

GFP was initially funded and staffed by members of the church. Since then, GFP has expanded to include volunteers from the community and has partnered with outside organisations to provide food for those in need.

Also, Taptap Send is an app that enables people send money to Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean at low prices.

Taptap Send is available in the UK, EU, U.S. and Canada. (NAN)

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