Daytime TV stars, musical artists, Broadway actors and celebrity chefs will be working together for a Daytime Cares event to benefit the Restaurant Strong fund.
The event is scheduled for Saturday, will run for 90 minutes, and will be streaming on Youtube and Facebook at 8 p.m. eastern time. The Restaurant Strong Fund supports restaurant industry employees who have been impacted by COVID-19 closures.
“This year, obviously because of COVID, we wanted to start an organization called Daytime Cares. To start spotlighting nonprofit organizations that are doing incredible work during this time and also for people to either donate or receive help as well,” Ari Zucker said.
Zucker is a Days of Our Lives star and the founder of Daytime Cares.
“This would be our second event now. And we were introduced to Greg Hill,” Zucker said. “(He) not only (has) the Greg Hill foundation, but also the Restaurant Strong Fund.”
Hill formed the Greg Hill Foundation, which responds to requests for assistance to improve the lives of families impacted by tragedy.
“(The Restaurant Strong Fund is) an effort to try to raise money for servers, bartenders, front of house people, back of house people, people who have been struggling to try to put food on their table to try to pay their bills. Since restaurants are at limited capacity, are closed for two weeks, open for two weeks. So we began back in March, almost as soon as a lockdown started here in Massachusetts, and we’ve been able to donate almost $10 million to help those who work in restaurants and in the latest case -- to help restaurants out. So it’s amazing and I want to thank these guys so much for including us and making us a part of this it’s been amazing.”
The Winterization Grant is the second phase of Restaurant Strong, Hill said. He said it started in cooperation with Grub Hub. The company donated $2 million, which means Restaurant Strong can give out $10,000 grants to restaurants that want to winterize.
“That can be tents and heaters,” Hill said. “Things that they can do to help them get through this next really difficult period. So, we’ve had thousands and thousands of applications. We’re going to get those grants out shortly here in December.”
The hosts were able to share a little bit about who would be attending the virtual event.
“Gloria Gaynor, I Will Survive. It’s so appropriate. Yes, she’s got, of course a Grammy for that song. Then just won another Grammy for her gospel testimony recently. So, 40 years years of doing her thing -- surviving. So, I think that’s all about, like, what Greg said -- now, we’re all in this together. Trying to help families of people who are struggling and she embodies that message in her life,” Shawn Christian said.
You can visit the Daytime Cares website by clicking here, or the Restaurant Strong website here.