NYPA President Justin Driscoll speaks at the Variety Boys and Girls Club of Queens annual gala. Photo: VBGCQ
Oct. 16, 2024 By Shane O’Brien
The Variety Boys and Girls Club of Queens (VBGCQ) held its annual gala at Sala Astoria last week, raising important funds for the non-profit’s various afterschool programs.
The event, themed “The Power of Community”, took place on Thursday, Oct. 10 at Sala Astoria at 34-39 31st St. and included an online auctioning featuring items from a variety of Queens-based institutions, including the New York Mets, the Noguchi Museum, JetBlue, Sky Farm LIC and Court 16 among many others.
The gala also honored the New York Power Authority, Rise, Light and Power/Attentive Energy One, Hydro-Québec/CHPE and 174 Power Global with awards in recognition of their work with VBGCQ over the past year.
Photo courtesy of Variety Boys & Girls Club of Queens
Costa Constantinides, CEO of Variety Boys and Girls Club, said Thursday’s gala was an “enlightening evening” highlighting the support that VBGCQ receives from the local community.
“The Power of Our Community gets brighter every year. We are humbled by the outpouring of support from our friends and partners as we move our programming forward,” Constantinides said in a statement.
Variety Boys and Girls Club of Queens was founded in 1955 and is currently the largest youth development organization in Western Queens, serving more than 4,000 young people every year and providing them with a safe haven to learn, play and grow into future leaders.
It regularly interacts with organizations such as NYPA, Rise, Light and Power, Hydro-Québec and 174 Power Global to run youth development programs for young members of the club.
NYPA President Justin Driscoll said working with VBGCQ is some of the most fulfilling work that NYPA does.
“The work with Variety Boys and Girls Club – developing relationships in the communities we serve, working with people like Costa Constantinides and his team – is some of the most rewarding work that we do at the New York Power Authority,” Driscoll said in a statement.
“I want to congratulate the other honorees. We’re working together on many levels on the clean energy transition, and we’re making great progress through our partnerships.”
Photo courtesy of Variety Boys & Girls Club of Queens
Sid Nathan, Vice President of External Affairs at Rise Light and Power, congratulated Constantinides and VBGCQ for their dedication to the youth of Western Queens.
“Rise is proud to partner with Variety Club to empower the next generation through focused STEM education. As our community works toward a cleaner, greener energy future, it’s essential that we equip today’s youth with the skills and knowledge to lead the way,” Nathan said.
Last week’s VBGCQ gala was sponsored by a number of organizations, including Rise, Light and Power/Attentive Energy, Hydro-Québec, Transmission Developers Inc, Champlain Hudson Power Express, Mega Contracting, Clean Path, Steve Madden, Con Edison, 174 Power Global, E-J Electric, Jingoli, LaGuardia Gateway Partners, CordMeyer and DLR.
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