Registration Now open for 9/11 Day of Service 2016Aug. 9, 2016 - In honor of those whose lives were lost or forever changed by the tragic events of September 11, 2001, County Executive Robert P. Astorino will join with Volunteer New York! and Robison Oil to host the “9/11 Day Serve + Remember” volunteer opportunities from Friday, September 9, through Sunday, Sept. 11, 2016. Service projects will kick off from 2 to 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 9, at the County Center in White Plains, and will run throughout the weekend at locations across Westchester and the surrounding area.

Westchester County’s formal 9/11 memorial ceremony at “The Rising” at Kensico Dam in Valhalla will begin at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 11. As always, the public is invited to attend.

“On the 15th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, we as a community continue to come together in remembrance and unity, proving that love and service will always prevail,” Astorino said. “Last year we had 1,200 volunteers put 1,670 hours of service back into the community as part of 9/11 Day. This year offers so many great ways to volunteer, whether it’s giving blood, feeding the hungry, educating our children or thanking our veterans. I hope you’ll all join us in remembrance.”

The theme of this year’s 9/11 Day is “Service. Empathy. Unity.” Many volunteer opportunities are family friendly and all will help support one of 40 local non-profits and causes. Register online at www.volunteernewyork.org/service or call (914) 948-4452 for more information.

Westchester County will also host its annual employee blood drive in partnership with the New York Blood Center from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 9, at the County Center. To sign up or learn more, please contact Janet Lokay at or (914) 995-2127.

“Join us as we remember the unity and compassion that was shared by the many first-responders, blood donors, and volunteers who came together after 9/11. And help us shine our light on the service and empathy that carries us forward,” said Alisa H. Kesten, Executive Director of Volunteer New York! “We encourage families, individuals and business groups to register today to honor the lives of those lost through these individual acts of service.”

David Singer, president of Robison Oil, the presenting sponsor, said: “Our company, Robison, was built on service – service to our customers and our community. That is why Robison is honored to be able to support this important day for families and individuals of all backgrounds to join together and volunteer. This is an important day in our community to serve and take action.”

9/11 Day Volunteer Opportunities at the Westchester County Center on Friday, Sept. 9, 2016:

Book Drive to Benefit Young Readers (2 - 5 p.m.)
Supports Open Door Family Medical Center

New Rochelle Youth Book Drive (2 - 5 p.m.)
Supports My Brother's Keeper

Blood Drive (9 a.m. - 4 p.m.)
Supports New York Blood Center

Join the Westchester Medical Corps (2 - 5 p.m.)
Supports Westchester County Department of Health

Be An Organ Donor (2 - 4 p.m.)
Supports LiveOnNY

Join the Bone Marrow Donor Registry (2 - 4 p.m.)
Supports New York Blood Center

Make Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches for Food Pantry (2 - 3:30 p.m. / 4 - 5:30 p.m.)
Supports One Sandwich at A Time

Donate, Sort and Package Diapers for Westchester Diaper Bank (2 - 5 p.m.)
Supports Junior League of Central Westchester

Create No Sew Fleece Blankets (2 - 3:30 p.m. / 4 - 5:30 p.m.)
Supports Project Linus

Create Literary Enrichment Activities (2 -3 p.m.)
Supports Leake & Watts

Create Rainbow Fish Literacy Kits (2 - 3:30 p.m. / 4 - 5:30 p.m.)
Supports WestCOP

Thank a First-Responder (2 - 3:30 p.m. / 4 - 5:30 p.m.)
Supports United for the Troops

Create #DadBeThere Artwork (2 - 5 p.m.)
With Westchester County Department of Social Services

For a complete list of the 40 local 9/11 Day service projects, locations and their descriptions, which are scheduled from Friday, Sept. 9 – Sunday, Sept. 11, 2016, please visit www.volunteernewyork.org/service.

2016 9/11 Day participating non-profits and causes include:
Afya Foundation, A-HOME, Atria Senior Living - Briarcliff Manor, Community Service Associates, the #DadBeThere Fatherhood Initiative, Dominican College Project, Family Services of Westchester: The Sharing Shelf, Girl Scouts, Graham Windham, Hillside Food Outreach, Humane Society of Westchester, Junior League of Central Westchester, Leake & Watts, Life Progressive Services, Live On New York, Meals on Wheels, Mercy College, Montrose Veterans Hospital, My Brother’s Keeper, My Second Home, New York Blood Center, One Sandwich At A Time, Open Door Family Medical Center, Operation Gratitude, Ossining School District, Our New Way Garden & Acorn Organics, Pace University Project, Project Linus, Ronald McDonald House of GHV, Rye Nature Center, Schaffer Extended Care Center, Teatown Lake Reservation, United for the Troops, Volunteer New York! Hunger Relief Corps, Westchester County Health Department, WJCS Kids’ Closet, Westchester Parks Foundation, WestCOP and Worldwide Community First Responder, Inc.

About Volunteer New York!
The core mission of Volunteer New York! (volunteernewyork.org) is to inspire, mobilize, and equip individuals and groups to take positive action to address pressing challenges, support non-profits and improve the quality of life in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam. For more than 66 years the organization has encouraged adults to serve, youth to build character, families to bond, young professionals to lead, mature adults to share their wisdom and businesses to engage through volunteerism.

Volunteer New York! helped coordinate over 270,000 hours of service, which were devoted last year to over 500 nonprofits at a value of over $7.3 million. The Corporate Champions who strongly support the mission of Volunteer New York! include: Bunge Limited, MasterCard, New York Life, PepsiCo, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Robison Corporation, Scent 2 Market, The Journal News and Lohud.com, Two’s Company, Con Edison, Empire City Casino, Keystone Property Group, M&T Bank, Morgan Stanley, PKF O'Connor Davies, The Rollins Agency, Inc., NewYork-Presbyterian, Balancing Life’s Issues, Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC, PCSB Bank, The Dannon Company, Chubb Group of Insurance Companies, Entergy, IBM, MAG Real Estate Advisors, Inc., Montefiore Health System, Pentegra Retirement Services, LLP, Reckson - a division of SL Green Realty Corp, RPW Group, Sterling National Bank, TD Bank, The Westchester Bank, and Westmed Medical Group. With ongoing support from Westchester Community Foundation, Westchester County, Corporation for National & Community Service, and the New York State Commission on National and Community Service.