When it comes to charity, Chris Cannon puts his money where his mouth is.
The New York restaurateur promised to help the Community Soup Kitchen in Morristown, and he came through — even before officially opening his Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen down the street.
Before opening his doors to the dining public, Cannon hosted a sold-out fundraiser last September that raised more than $50,000 for the soup kitchen. The restaurant also donates soup every week, and food for holiday meals.
And so Cannon will be honored on April 16, 2015, with the soup kitchen’s Community Leadership Award, at the Madison Hotel.
This Share the Bounty cocktail party buffet and silent auction also will pay tribute to Mary Gannon, who will receive the Caritas Award for 20 years of volunteer service at the soup kitchen.
Tickets for the Share the Bounty fundraiser are $60, available at the soup kitchen website. Below are more details from the soup kitchen.
MORE ABOUT CHRIS CANNON’S JOCKEY HOLLOW
MORE ABOUT THE COMMUNITY SOUP KITCHEN
FROM THE COMMUNITY SOUP KITCHEN:
“Community Soup Kitchen holds fundraiser to Honor Restauranteur Chris Cannon of Jockey Hollow Bar and Kitchen, and Local Volunteer Mary Gannon”
The Community Soup Kitchen in Morristown will hold its annual “Share the Bounty” cocktail party buffet and silent auction on Thursday, April 16th at 6:00 p.m. at The Madison Hotel.
This year, the event will help raise funds to keep the Soup Kitchen going strong and its doors open every day, 365 days a year. This past winter, the Soup Kitchen celebrated 30 years of never missing a day.
With drastic cuts to the Food Stamp program, families in our community are hurting more than ever and the Soup Kitchen is responding by opening its doors early for breakfast, continuing to serve lunch, and expanding its Free Farmers Markets to 4 times a week.
Over the last year, the Soup Kitchen served more than 58,000 breakfast and lunch meals, distributed over 425,000 pounds of food, and provided more than 2,600 social and medical referrals. The Soup Kitchen is busier than ever before and has expanded the services it offers to meet the increased needs of the homeless and working poor in the community.
Being honored at this year’s “Share the Bounty” are Chris Cannon, owner of Jockey Hollow Bar and Kitchen (JHB&K) and local volunteer Mary Gannon.
Cannon is being honored with the Community Leadership Award for his commitment to the Soup Kitchen since opening JHB&K. Even before his newest eatery opened its doors, Cannon had plans to give back to the community.
At the time when opening the historic Vail Mansion in Morristown was just a dream, Cannon met with the Soup Kitchen and made a vow that he wasn’t just opening a new restaurant, but that he wanted to be a part of the community and locally help those in need.
True to his word, Chris hosted a sold-out fundraiser for the Soup Kitchen the week before JHB&K opened its doors, raising over $50,000 and donating 100 percent of the proceeds to help the Soup Kitchen. JHB&K also participates in the “Kitchen to Kitchen” program, donating soup weekly and food for holiday meals. “This is just the beginning of what we hope to do to support the community,” Cannon said.
Mary Gannon will receive the Caritas Award for her 20 years of faithful volunteer work at the Soup Kitchen. Gannon not only volunteers, but connects with the Soup Kitchen guests in a personal way – her small acts of kindness, such as always arriving with fresh homemade scones and chocolate chip cookies, make difficult lives a bit easier.
As Gannon says, “I can’t fix all of the problems of the world, but I can feed people who are hungry for food, compassion and love.” Gannon volunteers for breakfast, lunch and the Free Farmers Markets, and also coordinates teams of volunteers from various Florham Park congregations.
To purchase tickets ($60 per person) or make a donation for “Share the Bounty,” please visit the Community Soup Kitchen’s website at www.cskmorristown.org.
