A 100 turkey mission
Monroe. Lena Silk read about a need for Thanksgiving turkeys for veterans and others in need, so she and Domenick Tondo went shopping for 100 turkeys.
HARRIMAN /
| 21 Nov 2022 | 11:59
Jim and Rob Silk unloaded the turkeys,
Lena Silk with a turkey
Jim Ferrigno and Rob Silk unload the turkeys.
From left: Rob Silk, Lena Silk, Father Emmanuel, Jim Ferrigno and Domenick Tondo.
St. Joan of Arc, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Sloatsburg, where 300 come for food weekly.
As Lena Silk read through the Photo News and saw the article about struggling veterans in need of turkeys, she decided to embark on a mission to secure 100 turkeys for veterans and others in need.
Phone calls went to local supermarkets and emails went across the county to secure these birds “for our Veterans that have given so much to our country”, said Lena.
Soon, others started helping with Silk’s cause. Domenick Tondo of Tondo Creteations, Monroe, NY, contributed to the donation of the turkey’s and also located a supply in overabundance of these special birds to donate. Tondo negotiated with the store manager for the 100 birds
Silk, along with Tondo, purchased and organized the delivery of the Turkeys with the help of a longtime friend, Jim Ferrigno, from American Legion Post 488 – a.k.a. “Big Jim.”
“Big Jim”, much involved with veteran support, arranged for veterans and the parishioners in need at St. Joan of Arc Church in Sloatsburg, NY, to receive the Thanksgiving turkeys. Father Joseph A. Emmanuel was grateful for the donation and said that his church helps feed 300 families weekly.
“There’s nothing better than the feeling you get when you help others,” said Lena Silk.
Lena Silk is the broker/owner of National Veterans Realty Group in Harriman, catering to everyone, she says, but with a “special passion to help all veterans’” that come her way.
Domenick Tondo works in conjunction with Tetz Concrete to custom build for veterans, and he handles all construction project types, from residential to commercial.