Gastineau Attends Cedar Grove Fundraiser Saturday

When former professional football player Mark Gastineau left the New York Jets in 1988, his life took a turn for the worse.

The former defensive end got into drugs and had several run-ins with the law — including serving 18 months in jail in 2000 for hitting his estranged wife.

Now sober, Gastineau took his positive message to the children of Verona when he appeared Saturday as an ambassador for ChildCryNYC.org, an organization devoted to feeding children around the world.

ChildCryNYC.org was started back in 2004, when a team of more than two hundred people from Times Square Church traveled to Zambia for an outreach. Out of 10 million people in the country, 700,000 were children living in the streets being cared for by 10-year-old children, without parents, without guardians and without any food.

Gastineau, attended the event at John Emilio Salon & Spa, 1064 Pompton Ave. in Cedar Grove, to help raise money for the organization, which provides food for more than 4,150 children in 22 countries around the world. The event raised more than $1,000, according to organizers, and was attended by 50-75 people.

The event, co-sponsored by the spa and the Yampaglia law firm, featured a raffle of sports memorabilia and other prizes.