BUFFALO, N.Y. — We've been hearing about a lot of local efforts to bring food and supplies to healthcare workers and first responders on the front lines of the Covid-19 pandemic in Western New York. One man in the Cheektowaga helped provide 300 meals, thanks to a grassroots effort that started with a single Facebook post.
Back on March 24, Shawn Morrisey was brainstorming ways he could help some of his favorite local restaurants. He put up a post on Facebook, asking for 40 of his friends and family to donate ten dollars each. He wanted to place a $200 catering order at each of his favorite spots in Cheektowaga, Danny's, and the 33 Speakeasy. His plan was to donate the meals to hospital workers and other first responders. Shawn ended up raising $1,600, quadrupling his original goal.
"It just shows what a good group of friends I'm lucky to around, to have," he told 2 On Your Side. "The Cheektowaga community is the best in the world if you ask me. It literally took a couple buttons for me to post the idea on Facebook, and a simple couple buttons for people to send to the Venmo account that we supplied everything for. Little, acts of kindness yielded such big results."
By the end of last week, Shawn and his wife were able to bring 300 meals total to hospital and grocery workers, as well as the Cheektowaga and Depew police departments.