Canceled Global Citizen Festival Donates Catering Food to NYC Charity
God's Love We Deliver received tons of food intended for the event after it was called off due to a severe storm.
Tons of food meant to cater the star-studded Global Citizen Festival in Central Park on Saturday were donated to God’s Love We Deliver, a New York City charity, after the concert was canceled due to an approaching nor'easter.
The annual fundraising concert, scheduled to be hosted by actor Hugh Jackman and feature performances by artists including Lenny Kravitz, Lauryn Hill, and Wyclef Jean, was called off as the storm was expected to impact the region throughout the weekend.
Greg Williamson, founder of Love Rocks NYC, an annual benefit concert for God's Love We Deliver, was contacted by David Beame, a producer for the Global Citizen Festival. Beame stated that they had food for thousands of people and did not want it to go to waste, inquiring if God’s Love We Deliver could assist.
Williamson then contacted the charity, and they began coordinating the pickup of the surplus food. God’s Love We Deliver, founded in 1985 during the AIDS pandemic, provides medically tailored meals free of charge to New Yorkers who are too ill to cook or shop for themselves.
The charity also distributed any food it could not use to other organizations serving hungry residents. The Global Citizen Festival, established in 2012, is an annual event held in Central Park each September in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly, aiming to raise awareness and funds for global poverty and climate change. Williamson's own charity, Love Rocks NYC, has raised over $70 million for God's Love We Deliver.