Sue Taub of Briarcliff Manor Celebrates Spring with Leake & Watts

Friends of Leake & Watts gathered at New York’s Riverpark Restaurant April 30 to raise money for Leake & Watts’ vital support of thousands of vulnerable children, adult, and families in the New York Metropolitan Area. Guests, including Sue Taub of Briarcliff Manor, had the opportunity to meet Christian Hurtado and Andrew Maldanado, two young men who are blossoming thanks to the support of Leake & Watts, an award-winning nonprofit.

The theme of the night was farm-to-table, as Riverpark is home to Manhattan’s largest urban farm, which is located just steps from the kitchen. Leake & Watts Youth Gardening Program also supports an urban farm, which grows food for the Food Bank For Westchester on the Leake & Watts campus in Yonkers. From spring to fall, adolescents supported by Leake & Watts’ resident treatment center cultivate, plant, and weed an immaculate half-acre vegetable garden on the agency’s Yonkers campus. Teens have to apply for these highly-coveted gardening jobs. The program helps youngsters cultivate their own sense of responsibility — a core Leake & Watts value — and take pride in the tangible results of their effort.

“Our Youth Gardening Program lets the teens we support taste the fruits of their labor – literally,” explains Alan Mucatel, Executive Director at Leake & Watts. [Mucatel is seen at left in the second photo, which includes Andrew Maldanado (center) and Yonkers Police Officer Rick Alaimo.] “They learn the delight of biting into a fresh tomato they have grown and picked from the wine. They know the satisfaction of helping the Food Bank feed the hungry. Most importantly, they learn that they can be successful, and the experience prepares them to achieve success in other areas of their life.”

Founded as a Manhattan orphanage in 1831, Leake & Watts operates programs serving more than 8,000 children, adults, and families throughout New York City and Westchester County. Programs include early childhood education, foster care and adoption, specialized education services, a home for teenage mothers in foster care, behavioral/mental health support services, and juvenile justice services. Leake & Watts also operates residences for adults with developmental disabilities and a Preventive Services program to stabilize at-risk families so children can remain in their parents’ care. For more information, visit www.leakeandwatts.org.