Island Harvest to Honor Bank of America & John Aruanno, Arrow Produce

Island Harvest Food Bank’s popular Taste of the Harvest Celebration fundraiser returns for its 30th year on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, at 5:30 p.m., at Crest Hollow Country Club, 8325 Jericho Turnpike, Woodbury, New York. Award-winning Pei-Sze Cheng, a member of NBC 4 New York’s investigative unit, the I-Team, will be emceeing the much-anticipated event, the food bank’s largest fundraising event of the year.

The Taste of the Harvest Celebration is a gourmet-tasting fundraising event set in a casual cocktail party-style format. It features an array of scrumptious food and desserts prepared by some of Long Island’s top restaurants, caterers, country clubs and other fine eateries, which are sure to please the most discriminating palates. Among the fine food and desserts includes that from Long Island’s top restaurants, including 317 Main, AG Steakhouse, All Star Specialties, Cefalu, Curbside Mexican Grill, Duck Island Bread Company, Fogo De Chão, Food Nation Generation, Harbor Seafood, Iavarone Italian Kitchen, Lessing’s Hospitality Group restaurants: Mirabelle; View; Bayberry; and Sandbar; Limani, Nissequogue Golf Club, Noema, Opus by Anthony Scotto, Pintail Coffee, Sawasdee Thai Elevated, Season’s 52, SerendipiTea, Sobaya, Spuntino Wine Bar & Italian Tapas, True Food, Umberto’s of New Hyde Park, Vico, Vincent’s Clam Bar, Zorn’s of Bethpage and more.

This year’s fundraiser will honor Bank of America with Island Harvest’s 2024 Above & Beyond award. Bank of America is a leading global financial institution focused on delivering profits and purpose. It is committed to partnering with local organizations like Island Harvest while making progress on important issues affecting our communities. For decades, Bank of America has been supporting the work to end hunger by partnering with Island Harvest, providing thousands of employee volunteer hours, food donations, and more than $1.2 million in financial support, including an investment of over $500,000 to help Island Harvest launch its groundbreaking Workforce Skills Development Institute.

Receiving the 2024 Linda Breitstone Spirit award (named for Island Harvest’s founder) is John Aruanno, owner/operator of Arrow Produce, a prominent wholesale produce supplier serving restaurants on Long Island and New York City. John began Arrow Produce in 1986, working in the Hunts Point Produce Market in the Bronx where, after work, he and his brother Peter would fill their family station wagon with fresh produce and sell it to neighborhood delis and pizzerias growing the business to become one of the region’s leading produce wholesalers. During the pandemic, when restaurant orders ceased, Arrow Produce partnered with Island Harvest to create and deliver individual boxes of produce that were distributed across Long Island to our neighbors in need. John and the entire Arrow Produce family stepped up to help when the community needed it most, and they have become steadfast supporters and an ongoing supplier of Island Harvest.

In addition to the above award recipients, Island Harvest will pay tribute to Linda Breitstone, who founded the organization in 1992. Breitstone passed away on July 16, 2024, at her home in Hawaii at the age of 73 after a brief battle with cancer.

Bank of America is the anniversary celebration sponsor for the 2024 Taste of the Harvest Celebration. Amazon and Bethpage Federal Credit Union are Master Chef sponsors.

Tickets for the Taste of the Harvest celebration are $350 per person, and the purchase helps Island Harvest continue its hunger-relief efforts throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties. The celebration also features an exciting raffle and a silent auction with prizes that include New York sports tickets and memorabilia, weekend getaways, restaurant gift certificates, and much more.

For more information about the event, including sponsorship opportunities, please contact Franca Gerrard, Special Events, Marketing & Communications Manager, at 631-873-4775, extension 228 or franca@islandharvest.org, or visit www.islandharvest.org.

About Island Harvest Food Bank

Island Harvest Food Bank is a leading human services organization whose mission is to end hunger and reduce food waste on Long Island. We accomplish this through innovative programs and services aimed at enhanced hunger awareness, short-term case management, nutrition education, outreach and advocacy initiatives, a Workforce Skills Development Institute, our organic farm, and efficient food collection and distribution. Our work directly supports children, families, seniors, and veterans who turn to us in times of crisis and when needed and supports a network of 300 community-based nonprofit organizations. Island Harvest Food Bank is a member of Feeding America®, a nationwide network of food banks leading the effort to solve hunger in the U.S. To learn more, visit www.islandharvest.org.