Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - The Buffalo Sabres have joined the Buffalo Bills in helping Buffalo's East Side community following the racially motivated mass shooting on May 14 at the Tops Friendly Market on Jefferson Avenue.
The team announced on Monday that the Buffalo Sabres Foundation is donating $100,000 to the Resource Council of WNY, which operates the Buffalo Renaissance Foundation Community Center at 347 East Ferry Street. The donation will support staffing and programming at the center.
The community center has become a resource for residents of the East Side neighborhood since that tragic event that left the Tops closed on Jefferson Avenue. It now serves as one of the key distribution sites of food and other essential goods for Tops Friendly Markets.
It was just this past Thursday when a number of Bills and Sabres Alumni helped collect and distribute goods at the site on 347 East Ferry Street. Among those in attendance for the Sabres were Rob Ray, Patrick Kaleta, Martin Biron and recently retired play-by-play man Rick Jeanneret.
“We are proud to have been investing in the Resource Council of WNY and Buffalo Renaissance Foundation Community Center since 2015 and remain committed to helping provide access to educational and recreational opportunities at the center in the wake of the heartbreaking tragedy that happened last Saturday,” said Buffalo Sabres Foundation President Rich Jureller in a statement. “We need to support our neighbors and be catalysts for change, and this will hopefully be a small part of the healing process as we come together as a community. The Resource Council of WNY’s longstanding goal of bringing stability, hope and inspiration to families they serve is more important now than ever before.”
Since the center opened in 2015, the Buffalo Sabres Foundation has invested $1.2 million in the center and has helped procure grants totaling almost $700,000 from the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation and the NHL/NHLPA Industry Growth Fund. In addition to monetary assistance, the Foundation has led fundraising efforts, garnered support and worked to secure program partners whose contributions expanded the capacity and offerings at the center.
The Resource Council of WNY operates the Buffalo Renaissance Foundation Community Center, which provides after-school education support to youth on Buffalo’s East Side, as well as a variety of recreation programs, including swimming instruction and summer camps. The center is often used for family gatherings and includes a computer lab, reading library and gymnasium. Adjacent Perkins Park features a ball hockey rink, basketball courts and flag football field.
