Members of the Utica College Football Team and the Oneida…

Members of the Utica College Football Team and the Oneida County Farm Bureau Assist the Sheriff’s Office with the Delivery of 5,000 Pounds of Potatoes For the Utica Food Pantry Ahead of Thanksgiving

Oneida County Sheriff Robert Maciol, members of the Sheriff’s Office, members of the Utica College Football team, and representatives from Oneida County Farm Bureau, picked up 5,000 pounds of locally grown Potatoes today that will be distributed next week as part of the Utica Food Pantry’s Thanksgiving Dinners for needy families in the Utica area.

The potatoes were grown locally at the Simmons Farm located in Vernon Center and were purchased at a discounted rate. The funding to purchase the potatoes was provided jointly by the Oneida County Sheriff’s Law Enforcement Foundation and the Ancient Order of Hibernians.

The members of the Utica College Football team assisted at the farm with the loading of the potatoes and the unloading of them at the Irish Cultural Center in Utica, where they will be stored until next week when they will be part of the 1,000 Thanksgiving dinners that will be distributed by the Utica Food Pantry.

“The Sheriff’s Office prides itself on helping those in our community during a time of need and we’re proud and happy to partner with the Utica College Football team and our farmers as we do our part to help the Utica Food Pantry in any way we can as they lead the fight against hunger in our community”, according to Oneida County Sheriff Robert Maciol.

Attendees at today’s event:

Oneida County Sheriff’s Office:

Sheriff Robert Maciol

Undersheriff Joe Lisi

Sergeant Scott Kahl

Officer Curtis Morgan

Utica College Football Team:

Hayden Knauf

Jamarious Morgan

Jimmy Polito

Daniel McShane

John Aliberti

Oneida County Farm Bureau:

Benjamin Simons

Simmons Farm (where potatoes were produced):

Frank Simmons

Mike Simmons (Retired Investigator with the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office)

Ancient Order of Hibernians :

Pat Costello