The Port Washington rowing club collected a boatload of food to donate to Our Lady of Fatima Saturday morning.
“It’s the right thing to do,” Friends of Port Rowing President Matt Lucas said. “Since we’re a big community, it’s something we can get done.”
Port Rowing is a community-based, competitive rowing club for middle school and high school students in Port Washington. Although it is based in Port Washington, the club is open to any rowers throughout Long Island.
Lucas said the team found irony in collecting food as the student-athletes consume so much food themselves due to the physical toll of the sport.
Student-athletes and their families assembled food to be donated to the Port Washington church, which has a food pantry for non-perishable donations. The pantry is available for those in need in the Manorhaven or Manhasset Isle areas, according to the church’s website.
The food collection event, which coincided with Earth Day, also included a beach cleanup at North Hempstead Beach Park for the club to give back to the environment the rowers utilize for their sport, Lucas said.
“We’re good citizens,” Lucas said, “so we’re going to give back and support our local community.”
Lucas said Port Rowing is the NO. 1 user of park services in North Hempstead with over 100 Port Rowing families in the park daily from March to November.
Lucas said the purpose of the event was to get athletes and their families connected to the program and band together for community service. The day included community service as well as games played on the beach and food for everyone to enjoy together.
The event also included an inter-squad scrimmage, with co-ed boats made up of teams chosen by the athletes. While the boys’ and girls’ teams race at the same time, they do not get the chance ever to race together. Lucas said this was a way to bring them together and let them have some fun.
