BRUNCH IS SERVED
Hundreds support community nutrition, gardening group
ALBANY, N.Y.» The Capital Region community came together to support local nonprofit Capital Roots on Sunday at its 31st annual Spring Brunch.
About 700 people attended the popular yearly event, held Sunday at the Empire State Plaza Convention Halll in Albany.
The buffet brunch featured culinary fare prepared with food donated by 125 area restaurants as well as a pancake station provided by Rivers Casino & Resort, a silent auction with more than 100 items and children’s activities.
The fundraising effort supports Capital Roots, a 42-year-old nonprofit organization based in Troy that works to reduce the impact of poor nutrition on public health in New York’s Capital Region by organizing community gardens, providing healthy food access, offering nutritional and horticultural education for all ages and coordinating urban greening programs in Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady and southern Saratoga counties.
Sunday’s Spring Brunch was expected to raise more than $80,000 to benefit Capital Roots’ programs, including 52 Community Gardens, the Veggie Mobile, the Produce Project, Healthy Stores, Squash Hunger and more.
The annual brunch started as a small 50-person gathering at the former River Street Cafe in Troy, explained Capital Roots CEO Amy Klein.
While it’s grown tremendously over the past three decades, the Spring Brunch still serves as a kick-off to gardening season, and everything about it is community-focused, Klein said. “It’s really a
“It’s really a coming together of community. That’s still sort of its hallmark is to bring together people of all walks of life who are supportive of the organization. It’s truly a very community-focused event.” — Amy Klein, Capital Roots CEO
coming together of community. That’s still sort of its hallmark is to bring together people of all walks of life who are supportive of the organization. It’s truly a very community-focused event,” she said, mentioning the communal seating, food donated by area businesses and the many volunteers who help serve food and run the brunch each year.
Among those in the crowd of attendees at the 31st annual Capital Roots Spring Brunch were Troy Mayor Patrick Madden, Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan, Senator Neil Breslin, Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy, Assemblyman John McDonald and U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko, and hundreds of other community members.
Mayor Madden called the brunch “a terrific traditional event that supports a great organization.” Having Capital Roots headquartered in the Collar City is “another jewel in the crown of Troy,” he said, describing how its programs have transformed neighborhoods. “It adds a lot to the community and it just seems to grow every year.”
Senator Breslin, who attends every year, also had positive sentiments about the event and the organization. “Capital Roots does such a phenomenal job in our community, servicing and allowing people the knowledge to grow food for all of us, to help the less fortunate,” he said. “It’s become a fixture in our community.”
The Spring Brunch is also a great way to bring together supporters from throughout the wide area Capital Roots serves. “We’re a regional organization and the whole regional supports us,” Klein said. “That’s a beautiful part of this event.”
More information about Capital Roots, including its programs and upcoming events, is available online at www.capitalroots.org.