CRAIG MURPHEY. 1981-2007.

Craig Murphey was a young community organizer and anti-poverty advocate whose life was cut short in a tragic bike accident in 2007. He served in the VISTA National Service Program of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger (NYCCAH) and, after graduating from VISTA, worked as the community organizer for Cathedral Community Cares at The Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine. He coordinated and expanded the efforts of the West Harlem Action Network Against Poverty (WHANAP) and the Feed the Solution campaign. In both capacities, he worked to bring together neighborhood food pantries and soup kitchens for joint activities.

In the spirit of Craig's life, the NYCCAH worked with WHANAP to begin the Craig Murphey Fellowship Fund to support a fellowship program focused on anti-hunger, community-based work. Continuing Craig's commitment to the anti-hunger and community organizing movements, the first Craig Murphey fellow, Michael Paone, has been working throughout the West Harlem area to organize residents around anti-hunger issues and to build awareness of the 1.3 million people throughout the city who don't have enough nutritious food. In the past six months, Michael has coordinated with the West Harlem based Community Supported Agriculture program (CSA) to provide fresh produce from New York farms to the neighborhood by making it accessible and offering affordable pricing options , so that all socio-economic levels are able to participate in the program. Through community meetings, Michael has been able to continue Craig's legacy of motivating area residents to actively engage in the social-justice issues in the community.

On October 17, 2009 Craig's friends and family will gather at Hope Lounge (10 Hope Street between Roebling and Havemeyer) for a party commemorating Craig's life, and to celebrate the joy he brought to everyone who knew him. Craig was known by most for his roaring laugh, contagious smile and outrageous dancing that kept us all entertained. To kick off the night, a raffle will take place.

Tickets will be available for purchase both at the venue and in advance at craigmurphey.com/raffle for $5-$10 dollars each. Local boutiques, bars, restaurants, artists and musicians have donated prizes ranging in value from $20 to $500 to the raffle. A percentage of the bar's earnings for the night and the entire profit from the raffle tickets will be donated to NYCCAH and the Craig Murphey Fellowship Fund. Our goal is to raise several thousand dollars to provide a year's salary for the next Craig Murphey fellow.

For more information contact Alix McAlpine at craigmurpheyraffle@gmail.com directly for details on how to donate prizes for the raffle.

And to participate in the hummus cookoff, email Jim at hummus@craigmurphey.com.

This year's donors include:

- Andy Perez
- Bryan Derballa
- Elizabeth Weinberg
- Sue Smith
- Adam Collison
- BCC
- Sel de Mer
- Mesa Coyoacan
- The Weight
- Whisk
- Tell all your friends
- Roberta's
- Chuck Donoghue
- Miano Viel Salon - CSS
- Slice Magazine
- Mishka
- Fool's Gold
- Gigantic Records
- M Shanghai
- M Noodle Shop
- Inked Magazine
- Abhyasa Yoga Center
- Brooklyn Bowl
- Lauren Denitzio