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WHEREAS, Katrina Luffey is an 8th grader at the Brookline K-8 school in the Brookline neighborhood of Pittsburgh; and
WHEREAS, Katrina has shown herself to be an exemplary young person and dedicated community member through her work with the Bethel-St. Clair Rotary Club Get Stuffed with Love program, where volunteers organize the collection and distribution of food to people in need on Thanksgiving; and
WHEREAS, Katrina first became involved with the Get Stuffed with Love program when she was only 3 years old, going along with her mother, Officer Christine Luffey, to deliver meals on the first year of the program; and
WHEREAS, on Thanksgiving of 2012, when Katrina was 8 years old, she was too sick to be able to help with the Get Stuffed with Love program, however she viewed the WPXI report on that year's program that inspired her to expand on the program's aims of helping the homeless population of Pittsburgh, by delivering clothing in addition to meals; and
WHEREAS, At the Carrick/Overbrook Block Watch meeting following Thanksgiving of that year, Katrina spoke to the block watch about her concern for the warmth of the homeless population of Pittsburgh, recommending her idea of distributing coats and blankets to complement the meals delivered by the Get Stuffed with Love program; and
WHEREAS, community members were immediately receptive to Katrina's idea, as she was promised coats that she would be able to deliver at that block watch meeting and in the following weeks, her mother received additional coats and blankets at work for Katrina's usage; and
WHEREAS, from that year on, Katrina and her mother Christine have collected donations of coats, blankets and cash from community members that they have delivered to those in need every Christmas Eve, and have always received invaluable contributions of both clothing and assistance from Heather and Herman Dieckmann and the rest of the Bethel-St. Clair Rotary Club; and
WHEREAS, Katrina, showing her compassion and understanding, delivers all of these resources in person, to ensure that those that she helps who feel especially downtrodden about their situation due to the holiday season can know that there are people who care for them; and
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NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh hereby acknowledges the work that Katrina Luffey has done in serving the homeless population of Pittsburgh through her work with the Get Stuffed with Love program; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council hereby declares Tuesday, December 19, 2017, “Katrina Luffey Day” in the City of Pittsburgh.