Volunteers in action at the food pantry fulfillment center in Greenpoint.
An emergency food pantry processing center has set up shop in Greenpoint and is in need of volunteers to help prepare aid packages.
A partnership between the non-profit organization Met Council and Yeshiva University is behind the effort to deliver groceries Holocaust survivors and homebound senior citizens who are especially vulnerable during the current pandemic.
With the new fulfillment center at 21 India St. processing between 500 – 2,000 food packages per day, volunteers are needed for morning, lunchtime and afternoon two-hour shifts; personal protective equipment will be provided for safety.
Other local pantries have also introduced delivery in response to the challenges caused by the pandemic, including the Greenpoint Hunger Program and the upstart pantry Food For Brooklyn.
The Met Council initiative utilizes volunteer UberEats vehicles to deliver to the groceries packaged at the fulfillment center.
The 55 Sutton St. location of the Food for Brooklyn pantry. (Via GoogleMaps)
A new food pantry and delivery service, Food for Brooklyn, was launched by married Greenpoint couple Blake and Laura Beth Comer just a few weeks ago and the number of families on their delivery route is already growing. “Yesterday I delivered a week’s worth of groceries to six families, and we’ve already picked up anther family for next week,” Mr. Comer said.
He began delivering groceries to families in North Brooklyn after coordinating with a friend volunteering with the Park Slope coffee shop-turned-food-bank Roots Cafe.
Food for Brooklyn will hold its first pantry distribution this Saturday at 55 Sutton St. from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Continue reading →
Pastor Ann Kansfield and Greenpoint Reformed Church hosts a weekly food pantry and they need our help. Read below and donate your time and food for a healthier and well fed Greenpoint!
I wanted to update you about some things going on at the Food Pantry at the Greenpoint Reformed Church. We’ve seen an increasing number of people coming on Thursdays for emergency food. Last week we served over 350 people. I’m not great at statistics, but I think this represents about a 50% increase since January. As a result, we’ve had to make a few changes. The first is that we’ve added additional hours to the pantry (we’re now open from 1-5pm). We’ve also added a new shift for volunteers, which is on Wednesdays evenings from 6-9pm.
This new shift will allow volunteers to make up the bags of groceries the day before the pantry starts, which will help the pantry run more smoothly when it’s open. There are three things that you can do to help:
1. Please share information about the pantry with anyone you know who might be in need of food. Our doors are open to anyone. People do not have to provide proof of citizenship or need. They just need to come to 136 Milton St. on Thursdays from 1-5pm and they will receive food.
2. Please volunteer or if you can’t, please share information about our new Wednesday evening volunteer shift with people you know who might be interested in helping. More info about volunteering is available here.
3. Please donate. We are able to buy food from the Food Bank of NYC for 10-18 cents a pound. For example, a case of 12 cans of Progresso soup cost $3.06 (almost $.25 per can) and box of Cheerios cost $.27. We can accept donations via PayPal or through Facebook Causes.
If you are aware of surplus food that could be donated to the pantry, please email me or call. We just have to find a way to transport it. Because demand is so high, virtually every piece of food that comes to the is distributed that same week.
Thanks again for all you do to help make Greenpoint and Williamsburg more healthy and well fed. Keep up the good work!
