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Stamford police officer organizes fundraiser for Haiti

Twenty percent of Wednesday night's sales at Puerto Vallarta restaurants across the state will be donated to Hope for Haiti.

Mark Sudol

May 15, 2024, 10:31 AM

Updated 210 days ago

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A Stamford police officer led a fundraiser to benefit Haiti.
"All of us sacrifice what we're doing," said Stamford Police Officer Panagiotis Kalmanidis. Kalmanidis, known to many in the city as Officer Peter, reached out to Puerto Vallarta restaurant in Stamford about raising money for the people of Haiti. "They're enduring economic and political hardships, humanitarian hardships," said Kalmanidis.
Twenty percent of Wednesday night's sales at Puerto Vallarta restaurants across the state will be donated to Hope for Haiti. This includes dine-in, takeout and liquor sales.
"This is great, we're going to be feeding people, we're going to be giving people shelter, we'll be giving people some more education some more books, building schools, I mean nothing better than doing this," said Puerto Vallarta president Jacob Rodriguez.
"I think we're here to serve, we're put on this Earthto serve, so being able to do that is just so fulfilling for me, and I'm just so happy to be a part of it," said Puerto Vallarta creative directorEdona Gjoka.
Hope for Haiti has a mission to improve the quality of life for the Haitian people, particularly women and children in Haiti. It's an organization that supports Haiti on a humanitarian basis. Kalmanidis says this effort will greatly benefit families with children, especially during these difficult times.
"I believe coming together and supporting our minority community people in general, it's a beautiful thing. And there's a lot of people that need our help here, and I see it every day in work through my job and my interactions," said Kalmanidis.
Stamford will celebrate Haitian Flag Day on 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Stamford Government Center. Puerto Vallarta will present a check to Hope for Haiti.