Smile Farms works to create vocational and educational opportunities and meaningful employment for people with disabilities in agriculture and hospitality. At their annual Growing Together Gala, they celebrated another year of making progress toward a more inclusive world.
The 2024 Growing Together Gala, held on Nov. 21 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Manhattan, honored the people who are integral to Smile Farms, like Sonia, who was given the Farmer of the Year award.
Sonia was once a patient at Catholic Health’s Mercy Hospital. As part of her ongoing recovery, she now works as a Smile Farmer at Catholic Health. The produce from this Smile Farms campus is donated to Mercy Hospital’s Family Care Program, where it is distributed to people who are food insecure.
Smile Farmers played a key role in the Growing Together Gala, helping to organize and decorate the event. Plus, their smiles showed just how the Jericho-based nonprofit got its name.
Audiences were also treated to dance and musical numbers from performers, including the Incognito Artists and jazz legend Ann Hampton Callaway, a Tony Nominee.
The Growing Together Gala also featured an auction, which helped raise money for the organization’s mission of providing educational and learning opportunities in agriculture for people of different abilities.
Gala attendees enjoyed food, drink and music, all while helping agriculture become a more inclusive field for all.
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