THANKFUL TO FEEL
Struggling homeless find warm welcome and food in
Even amid the madness, Mike Bonano found things to be grateful for in 2020 — his health, his home in one of the city’s shelters, and a hot meal with friends.
“It’s been a crazy year, definitely,” said Bonano, 50, who lives in the Harmonia Hotel in Midtown with his wife, Dawn Stahl.
“With the COVID going around I’m thankful I still have my mom and stepfather. Lost my father to COVID. Been a rough year, been out of work for a while. Being in the homeless system is a letdown,” Bonano said. “But throughout the years I’ve been here, I’ve met a lot of people.”
Bonano, along with other residents at the Harmonia, battled the city’s plan to move them to make space for the homeless men living in the Lucerne Hotel on the Upper West Side. The city relented, and Bonano and others were able to stay in their shelter.
On Thanksgiving, Bonano used what little money he has to cater a veritable Turkey Day feast for his wife and
for a family of five who also live at the Harmonia.
Because they don’t have kitchens at the hotel — and just a single microwave for 14 floors — Bonano ordered his turkey, potatoes and corn from Boston Market. Since he doesn’t have a dining room, he turned the empty apartment next door to his into a dining room.
“It was definitely a beautiful surprise, they did a beautiful spread and it almost felt like home. It actually did,” said Tricia, the mother of the family the Bonanos invited for the meal.
While Bonano at least has his room at the Harmonia, other homeless city residents, living in the streets, found themselves scrambling for a hot meal Thursday.
Arlene Sands, 56, who lives on the street in Manhattan, was more than thankful for the Thanksgiving meal she enjoyed at the Bowery Mission on the Lower East Side.
“The meal tastes like an explosion in your mouth. The seasoning, the dressing, it’s perfect. I’m really blessed. It’s so hard to get stuff like this this year. It’s nice to have someone look out for somebody else without asking for anything in return, especially now.”
Sands, originally from Philadelphia, had been living in the South recently and was on her way back up north when she stopped in New York, she said.
“I’m glad I stopped because I would’ve missed this. I can cross it off my bucket list now, eating the Bowery dinner on Thanksgiving,” she said.
But more than the food, the experience for Sands — being treated kindly and having people look after her well-being — is what counts.
“To be treated like a human, even for one day, it’s wonderful. Nobody is judging you here,” she said.
The people at the Bowery Mission hooked her up with shoes that fit — a first
for Sands in a long time. They gave her a coat and let her take a shower.
“Sometimes you feel really alone, but then you find something like this where everyone who feels lonely comes together,” Sands said. “I love it, brings so much warmth to my heart. It’s the family I don’t have anymore because they’re in Heaven.”
Sands ate her meal outside, in one of the tents set up by the Bowery Mission so that homeless people, staff and volunteers could socially distance.
Luis Molina, 58, has been going to the Bowery Mission for a few years, after losing his job as a cabbie when he got sick.
“I like to come here because it allows me to put a face on the fringes of society,” Molina, who is living in transitional housing, said.
“It’s important to remember you’re still someone. That’s why you should always help people, especially now when you see someone on the streets.”