Dear Editor:
Thank you and your readers for supporting Hudson Cradle Infant Home and our Taste of Hudson event on April 19. (“Hudson Cradle celebrates 15th Anniversary). The exposure we received contributed to this being our most successful special event fundraiser yet, enabling us to provide more services for the infant residents of our little rowhouse. In fact, our 452nd baby (in our 15 year history) arrived just this past week so we certainly have immediate needs to fill!
Hudson Cradle Infant Home is a small, Jersey City-based non-profit organization that exists mainly because of the support and efforts of local citizens. Without the generosity of Hudson County’s residents, governments and businesses, Hudson Cradle would not be able to operate: providing a loving, nurturing home for the littlest and most vulnerable members of our community – homeless infants with special health and developmental needs awaiting foster care: most of whom are prenatally drug exposed (usually cocaine and heroin), some HIV exposed, and some abused or neglected.
While space will not enable me to thank everyone by name, I do wish to cite the restaurants and food services who continue to be the cornerstone of our event, and to whom Hudson Cradle owes a world of thanks: 15 Fox Place Restaurant/ Word of Mouth Caterers; American BD/Opici Wine Group; BaGua Juice; Bar Majestic; Boylan Bottleworks, Casa Dante Restaurant; City Beans; C-Side; Culinart at New Jersey City University; Gallo Wine Sales; The Green Cow Gourmet & Catering Company; Hudson County Community College; Komegashi Japanese Restaurant; Liberty Health/Jersey City Medical Center; Light Horse Tavern; Make Wine With Us; Mama Rosa; Markers Harborside Grille; The Merchant; Miller Brewing Company; National Refrescos Import Company / Vina Casa Tamaya; Nu-Way Concessionaires; O’Connell’s; Pisco Wine & Queriolo Vineyard; P.J. Ryan’s; Porto Leggero; The Republic of Tea; Rosie Radigan’s; Ruth’s Chris Steak House; The Secret Chef; Taqueria Downtown; Texas Arizona; and, Whitsons Culinary Group. Special thanks to Hudson Cradle board member Joan Eccleston for so successfully discharging her restaurant recruitment duties as well as to all the other board members, volunteers and staff who worked on the event.
Our lead sponsor was once again Paulus, Sokolowski & Sartor/KeySpan Services, and additional corporate sponsors joined them to graciously contribute to the underwriting of the event: Fidelity Investments, Harwood Properties and the Silver Family Foundation as Gold Spoon Sponsors, and Goldman Sachs, Honeywell, Hudson County Community College, Metrovest, Pershing, United Water, Verizon, Wal-Mart Stores and Waters, McPherson, McNeill, P.C. as Silver Spoon Sponsors. Thanks also to Mack Cali Harborside Financial Center for providing such a great event space! As always, thanks to John Christian Entertainment’s band for providing the evening’s music at all of the past 17 Taste of Hudson events, and to opera singer Donna McCoy, this year’s special guest.
We are grateful to be a part of our wonderful Jersey City/Hudson County community and want to remind everyone that they can learn more about how they can help us by visiting us online at www.HudsonCradle.org. Once again, thank you for your support!
For the babies,
Sallie Porter
President/CEO
Hudson Cradle