A whole lot of warm and fuzzies are making the rounds thanks to two heartwarming nights of honoring local non-profits with Yelp Helps at Wix Lounge in Chelsea. By day, Wix Lounge is a co-working space building top notch websites for all sorts of businesses both big and small, but by night, it was transformed into a Mecca of great food, seasonal adult libations, and enough philanthropic do-gooding to fill your karma tank to the brim.
The two night affiar celebrated the act of giving back to the local NYC community by way of rubbing elbows with some of our favorite 501c3s who mixed, mingled, and schooled the Manhattan Yelp Community on their inspiring contributions to folks in need throughout The City. The many upstanding NPOs on night 1's "Get Fedorable For A Cause" included Charity: water (devoted to bringing clean, safe drinking water to people in developing nations), Ambassadors For Sustained Health (building community centers to fight disease and poverty… empowering poor communities through health and opportunity), 3 Day Startup (building entrepreneurial capabilities and cultures on university campuses), Amigos (An organization with more than 30 chapters across the U.S. providing leadership and community service opportunities for young people), Star Learning Center (providing one-on-one tutoring to low-income students in grades 2-12), The Blue Card (the only national organization in the United States whose sole mission is to help needy Holocaust survivors), Hot Bread Kitchen (increasing economic security for foreign-born and low-income women and men through valuable baking and culinary education), Life Vest Inside (dedicated to spreading kindness, helping people recognize their potential, and building self-esteem), Agent Of Change (a full service firm specilizing in mangaing and producing events in the non-profit sector), and Surfrider Foundation (dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world's oceans). Phew! And That was just night 1!
Night 2, "Yelp's Sock Hop To Support NYC," we were back at it with more non profits; Project Istwa (dedicated to the promotion of self-empowerment, awareness and self-expression amongst Haitian youth through the use of photography), Stupid Cancer (empowering young adults affected by cancer through innovative and award-winning programs and services), Essential Theater Group (an artistic community nurturing the creative development of actors, singers, writers, directors, dancers, musicians, and designers), City Harvest (helping feed more than one million people who face hunger each year), Family To Family (dedicated to pairing families with enough to share with impoverished American families who have profoundly less), God's Love We Deliver (prepare and deliver nutritious, high-quality meals to people who are unable to provide or prepare meals themselves due to illness), Blissful Bedrooms (transforming the personal spaces of young individuals who are wheelchair dependent and highly reliant on others for activities of daily living), Health Corps (nationwide movement toward a new generation of healthy young people founded by Dr. Oz), Project By Project (social entrepreneurs focusing on issues relating to the Asian American community by raising public awareness, volunteerism and capital), and Sweet Generation (an online custom bakery increasing access to arts education for children by providing an alternative fundraising platform). All that good sounds inspirational just reading it – imagine being there in person!
But it wasn't just non-profits on display over the last couple of days – an array of notable nibbles set up shop within the confines of Wix Lounge as well. Xavier S called Eight Turn Crepe's (FB | Twitter) Lychee Valentine with slivered almonds, raspberries, lychee, strawberry rose custard cream, and whipped yogurt the "highlight of the night." According to Allison C, "House of Cupcakes (FB | Twitter) made the Red Velvet purist in me quite content." Mitch E likened the spicy offerings from Glaze Teriyaki Grill (FB | Twitter) to Hope Solo; "A beautiful kick, tasty but powerful." Mike C enjoyed snacking on Pretzel Crisps (FB | Twitter), "especially the spicy Buffalo variety!" Allison M was down with the mushroom empanadas courtesy of Nuchas Empanadas (FB | Twitter). The sausage and mushroom pizza from Pala (FB | Twitter) "tasted exceptionally fresh and decadent" according to Ingrid S. David R enjoyed his run with Press Tea (FB | Twitter): "The sandwiches were tasty, the scones were really good, and the tea was super interesting." And by unanimous decision, the new Maple Glazed Pecan and Sea Salt varietal from Kind (FB | Twitter) were a home run.
It's not a party without booze – so Heartland Brewery (FB | Twitter) was on hand with new seasonal brews like their Pumpkin Ale (which was a huge hit), and Delivery.com (FB | Twitter) supplied Wines Of The World for folks with a grape laced buzz in mind.
Of course, Yelp Helps couldn't have been possible without the fine folks at Wix Lounge! We were able to raise almost $2500 for our participating local charities, and without Wix, none of this would have happened. If you're in the market for a stunning new website that's super easy to manage, be sure to check 'em out, stat!
We've got reviews and photos a plenty – Czech 'em out! Also, if you want to learn more about the Yelp Helps non-profits, feel free to click on their links above to learn more.
Ciao for now,
Ruggy J – NYC Community Director
