White Plains, NY - Recognizing that donations to food pantries and soup kitchens are down and most people don’t think about making contributions in the summer months, Westchester County is spearheading a countywide food drive to help local agencies meet a growing demand.

“So many people are struggling right now and the sad fact is that not everyone can afford to put food on their table,” Spano said. “Even in a county like Westchester, there are families that go wanting every day. The food pantries are also having a tough time. They’ve got more people knocking at their doors and not enough food sitting on the shelves.”

One in five Westchester residents need emergency food assistance just to get by – often juggling their food budget to pay rent or utilities. According to the Westchester County Department of Social Services, the number of families and individuals receiving food stamps has gone up almost 20 percent in the last year.

Spencer Barback, president of the Food Bank for Westchester, said the number of households requesting assistance from the emergency feeding network at Food Bank has gone up 15 percent in the last year, and food distributions have gone up 9 percent.

“The need is constant and families who are hungry or at risk of becoming hungry, and who cannot afford to buy all the nutritious food they need, need to have a place to go,” said Christina Rohatynskyj, the Food Bank’s executive director. “That’s where local food pantries and soup kitchens come in.”

It is well known that poor nutrition and malnutrition - especially in childhood - has a profound, negative, life-long social, physical and economic impact. A recent report issued by Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organization, talks about how food insecurity and hunger cause health and educational problems for children and can ultimately lead to difficulties in the workplace.

Twelve municipalities and 12 public libraries have stepped forward for this week’s food drive, as well as the YWCA in White Plains and Hilltop Hanover Farm in Yorktown. Nineteen county sites are also involved, including Playland, County Center, Croton Point Park, the Richard J. Daranco Courthouse, the Michaelian Office Building and Board of Elections in White Plains, the Record and Archives Center in Elmsford, several public works garages, the fire training center and a number of health and social services district offices.

Many of the locations are linking up with the county to donate to Food Bank for Westchester, which distributes to 181 local food pantries, shelters and soup kitchens, while others are partnering with an agency in their own community.

The municipalities involved are: Bedford, Elmsford, Harrison, Larchmont, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, North Castle, Port Chester, Somers, Tarrytown, Tuckahoe and Yonkers. The county is also organizing in-house collections and encouraging its 5,000 employees to contribute.

The full list of drop-off sites is available at www.westchestergov.com/fooddrive.

The most needed food items are:

- Cereals: hot or cold (corn flakes, frosted flakes, fruit loops, oat meal, grits)
- Meats and high protein groups
    o Canned meats: spam, ham, meat spread, beef stew, chicken, and corned beef
    o Canned fish: tuna, salmon, sardines, mackerel
    o Canned or dry beans: kidney, lentils, butter beans, great northern, lima
    o Canned soups: with beans, chicken, ham or beef
    o Peanut butter
    o Macaroni and cheese
    o Canned ravioli
    o Canned spaghetti & meat balls
- Beverages
    o Drink mixes: iced tea, Kool Aid, Tang
    o 100 percent juices in plastic bottle or can
    o Milk: canned or powdered
    o Canned juices
    o Coffee or tea
    o Hot chocolate
- Fruits and vegetables
    o Canned fruits
    o Canned vegetables
    o Canned spaghetti sauce
    o Dried fruits: raisins, apricots, prunes
- Pasta and grains
    o Rice: rice mixes and plain rice
    o Pasta: pasta mixes and plain pasta

Comments (0)

Name

Email

Comment

Write the displayed characters

Add Comment