Valley Streamers who do for others

April is National Volunteer Month, so we decided to recognize members of the Valley Stream community who go above and beyond in a volunteer capacity to help others and make the world we live in a better place.

Felicia Lotti, 64, is a member of the Holy Name of Mary Church Choir, Eucharistic minister for the homebound, works the parish blood and food drives, and participates in the Stewardship for Kids program. She has been a volunteer for more than 20 years. Lotti is a retired customer service and project manager. “I feel that whatever I do to help, whether it be for a single person or the community, I get back a million fold in other ways,” she said.

Michael Maloney, 67, volunteers for the Holy Name of Mary food pantry feeding the hungry. He works on the Christmas and clothing drives for the parish, and has been a volunteer for about five years. He is a retired pressman for the New York Daily News. “I just feel we should really help those who need our assistance in any way we can if we are really capable of doing so,” he said.

Rita Daniels, 56, volunteers at assisted living facilities, does work for local food drives and volunteered at a local benefit for cancer patient. She has been a volunteer for 10 years and is a retail salesperson. “Its just nice to step back from your own life sometimes and do something that makes someone else’s life a little better,” she said.

Janice Kerrigan, 52, volunteers in local soup kitchens, participates in parish blood drives and works for local book drives donating to children’s shelters. She has been volunteering for 12 years and works as a receptionist. “I make dinner for my kids every night, and there are some people out there who don’t know where their next meal will come from,” she said, “and that just hits home for me.”

Gloria Lopez, 38, has volunteered on mission trips to Guatemala and has collected cans and products for local food drives. She has been volunteering for the last three years and works as an office assistant. “You just see so many people who are starving and need a jacket,” she said, “and your heart goes out to them so I just feel that need to do something to make a difference.”

Albert Martel, 31, has volunteered with Habitat for Humanity building a house in Louisiana, and works in school program tutoring underprivileged kids in Queens. He has been volunteering for the last six years and works as a financial analyst. “Everyone’s got a busy schedule,” he said. “That doesn’t mean we should stop caring about the people around us.”