Queens Night Market Kicks Off Fall Season With Flood Fundraiser

FLUSHING, QUEENS — The Queens Night Market is returning to Flushing Meadows-Corona Park on Sept. 18 for the opening night of its fall season, which will double as a fundraiser for undocumented Queens residents who were impacted by Hurricane Ida.

100 percent of proceeds from opening night will benefit local flood survivors who cannot access FEMA aid because of immigration status, with vendors pledging money from the night’s proceeds, and the market itself encouraging attendees to give an entrance fee donation of $5.

“While it sucks to fall through the cracks in general, to slip through when your livelihood is on the line because of a natural disaster is a travesty,” said John Wang, founder of the Queens Night Market, in a news statement, pointing to to Hurricane Ida’s disproportionate impact on Queens, especially in low-income, frontline communities.

This fundraiser marks the second time this year that the Queens Night Market raised money on behalf of charitable organizations.

When The Night Market reopened in June after cancelling its 2020 season, the event introduced ticketed entry for the first time, in part to support vendors, and donated 20 percent of the net proceeds — amounting to $11,000 — to COVID- and racial equity-focused charities.

Since its summer return, Wang has balanced the “gravity and tragedy” of COVID’s impact on Queens — especially in the event's nearby neighborhood of Corona, the former epicenter of the epicenter — with his hopes that the event could represent “a celebratory beacon of solidarity and really just a huge, collective sigh of relief."

Peoples’ participation at The Night Market has suggested that is the case, according to Wang.

While turnout isn’t all that much higher this year than it was in 2019, Wang said he’s noticed a difference in “how long people are staying and how much they’re supporting vendors during their stay,” adding that he’s happy to see the event become “even a small reprieve” as we head into fall.

For the next several months, the Queens Night Market will operate every Saturday night, from 6 p.m. to midnight through Oct. 30, when it will conclude with a Halloween-themed event, complete with trick-or-treating and costume contests.

The Alliance for Flushing Meadows Corona Park gala fundraiser, is another event coming back this season on Thursday, Sept. 23 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. under the park’s iconic Unisphere.

All proceeds from the event's $50 tickets — which buy gala-goers unlimited made-to-order food and drinks courtesy of some Night Market vendors — will go to public programming and maintenance to the park.

As always, the event’s vendor lineup includes food from around the world, with vendors serving up Taiwanese noodle soup, Oaxaca tacos, Tibetan momos, Colombian arepas, Afghan dumplings, and more.