St. John’s Church of Worcester hopes to raise $875,000 to open a new food pantry on Temple Street through an October event featuring local and national celebrities.
City officials gathered at The Hanover Theatre Thursday morning to announce “A Night of Stars” gala event on Oct. 15. The event, which will be held at the Hanover, will feature comedian Norm Crosby, actress and singer Connie Stevens and a dozen other celebrities. Victoria Kennedy, the former wife of U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, will deliver the keynote speech and U.S. Congressman James McGovern, D-Worcester, is expected as well.
The fundraiser will benefit St. John’s Church of Worcester, which plans to use the money to build a food for the poor center.
For the past seven years, St. John’s has been running a free meal program at the church, according to the Rev. John Madden, the church’s pastor. In recent years, however, the program has begun running out of space.
This spring, the church purchased a 5,500-square-foot building at 20 Temple St. and have proposed building a food center at the site. Worcester-based design firm Lamoureux Pagano Associates has volunteered to design the center for free.
Heading up the gala and development of the center is Francis Carroll of Carroll Enterprises, founder of the Small Business Service Bureau, chairman of the St. John’s Food for the Poor Committee and chairman of the church’s finance committee.
Tickets for the gala will range between $25 and $40. VIP seats are on sale for $75. Tickets can be purchased at the Hanover Theatre box office or at www.thehanovertheater.org.
