Long Island Nets fight food insecurity with Long Island Cares

As part of the Long Island Nets’ Thanksgiving community initiatives, LI Nets players Frankie Policelli, Mark Armstrong, Jordan Minor and KJ Jones II and the Long Island Nets Dance Team spent the evening preparing and packing 150 Thanksgiving food boxes for local Long Island families in need at Long Island Cares, a food bank in Hauppauge.

“It’s the first time we’ve had basketball players and dancers here, and we’re excited to have [them],” says Kaylin Peterson, corporate philanthropy manager at Long Island Cares.

“It feels amazing to help out — they’ve done a lot for me, on and off the court, so it feels good to let them know I care about them,” says Long Island Nets forward Frankie Policelli about volunteering at the food bank.

According to Long Island Cares, 221,000 Long Island residents are food insecure and 65,000 are estimated to be children. The Long Island Nets and Long Island Cares have collaborated together to address food insecurity on Long Island since the 2020-21 season.

“Food insecurity is really important for us to tackle,” says Morgan Taylor, vice president of business operations at the Long Island Nets. “Being a part of the community, we want to make sure we are giving back.”