Way to Go! Friends Academy student raises thousands for food bank
Alistair Wright, a junior at Friends Academy in Locust Valley, recently helped organize a pickleball tournament that raised thousands of dollars for a Long Island food bank. Credit: Friends Academy
A student at a college preparatory school in Locust Valley has raised thousands of dollars for a Long Island food bank that was devastated by a fire at its former headquarters.
Alistair Wright, a junior at Friends Academy and resident of Douglaston, Queens, raised nearly $4,500 through a pickleball tournament earlier this month to benefit North Shore Soup Kitchen's NOSH, a Glen Head program that delivers meals to families in need because of the impact of COVID-19.
Wright, a co-captain on his school's varsity tennis team, organized the fundraiser after tearing a ligament in his ankle.
"I was sitting around and I thought to myself, 'I really want to do something useful with my time,' " said Wright, 16. "I think food insecurity is a big issue, and I feel like a lot of people don't know how important it is."
The tournament, called Rally for Hunger, featured two-person teams competing in a round-robin format at Robbie Wagner's Tournament Training Center in Glenwood Landing, which donated the use of its facilities. Wright raised the funds through $25 entry fees as well as through donations and sponsorships from local businesses.
Wright is also community liaison for his school's Diversity Committee and co-founder of the Political Discourse Club. In addition, he has been a player escort at the U.S. Open, a summer counselor at upstate-based Camp Dudley, and a volunteer at Zion Episcopal Church in Douglaston.
— MICHAEL R. EBERT
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
