Greenwich Restaurant Aims To Feed 500 Families In Need

GREENWICH, CT — In a year where hugs are not always a viable option due to the coronavirus, Tina Carpenteri and her brother, Frank, are hoping to offer families in need something just as good this holiday season: nuggets.

As co-owners of Garden Catering, an Old Greenwich staple known for its hand-cut chicken nuggets and tasty sandwiches, the siblings set a goal earlier this year to donate 20,000 meals to families financially affected by the coronavirus crisis through their "Nugs Not Hugs" program.

The owners have since blown past that number and now plan to donate 64,000 meals by the end of the year. (To sign up for Greenwich breaking news alerts and more, click here.)

In order to accomplish that goal, the owners have launched the "Nugs Not Hugs – Holiday Edition" campaign, which aims to provide full holiday meals to 500 Greenwich families this month, in collaboration with Greenwich United Way and other local non-profits.

"The goal is to at least find one organization in each town in which our stores reside to focus on," Tina Carpenteri said. "Some may have one or two more, but that's the goal; start off with these organizations and then work from there."

In addition to its two Greenwich locations, Garden Catering also has restaurants in Stamford, Norwalk, Fairfield and New Haven, as well as two New York locations in Mamaroneck and Port Chester.

Carpenteri noted the Old Greenwich restaurant is essentially their "headquarters," and the majority of meals donated through this campaign will come from that location.

Robert Moore, director of community impact for Greenwich United Way, said the organization has successfully collaborated with Garden Catering on various projects in the past. He also noted they hope to work with the restaurant on future projects that support the Greenwich community.

"We are grateful to work with [Garden Catering] this holiday season," Moore said, "and get food to families who need it."

Greenwich United Way CEO David Rabin also commended Garden Catering for their community work and fundraising efforts.

"Greenwich United Way is proud to partner with such a strong community leader as Garden Catering," Rabin said. "Frank and his sister, Tina, are such giving members of this community, always there to step up to help those in need."

According to Carpenteri, the idea for the holiday campaign came to her a few weeks before Thanksgiving.

"I was sitting at my desk," Carpenteri said, "and I thought about how we can impact our community more than we already have this year. It's a hard [year] for everyone...we're all weathering the storm. Everyone kind of feels it in a different way, so it's hard for everyone, but it's harder for some."

The owners kicked off the holiday campaign by providing 83 families with full Thanksgiving dinners last week, however Carpenteri said they were determined to keep the program going past the big food holiday.

"I want to do this through the end of the year," Carpenteri said "I [didn't] want to stop at Thanksgiving. I think that the holidays and the rest of this year really needs to be celebrated in any way that we can safely do so."

While the campaign is self-funded by Garden Catering, customers can help contribute to this goal through the restaurant's website or its app, which even offers an option for customers to purchase a family meal for themselves and simultaneously donate a holiday meal to another family.

"We will do this regardless," Carpenteri said, "so any support we got from the community is appreciated, and we will just continue on this path to 500 meals."

As they get closer and closer to donating over 60,000 meals, Carpenteri said she could not be happier to have helped so many people in need this year.

"I'm just so proud of what we've done this year," Carpenteri said. "It's been a really difficult time for everybody, and knowing that we are able to do probably more than our part to be able to support our communities and families in need has been really great. At the end of the day, it just makes me really happy."

She also is proud her family has been able to give back and support a community like Greenwich that has supported their business for decades.

"We've always held that mantra to give back and support our community," Carpenteri said, "because we have such a long-standing relationship with our community that it makes sense. It's something we feel is very important, and something that is deeply rooted in who we are as people and as business owners."

The "Nugs Not Hugs — Holiday Edition" campaign runs until the end of the month. Further information about the campaign and how to donate can be found on Garden Catering's website.

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