Food. Many of us take for granted where our next meal comes from. With a few dollars, most folks can stop by a convenience store, gas station, supermarket, or restaurant to pick up a bite to eat. But for millions of Americans, food insecurity is a daily threat. People with food insecurity have the difficult decision to choose between paying the bills or feeding themselves and their families. More than 34 million people in the US face this hard reality annually according to feedamerica.org. That is 10.2% of the US population (ers.usda.gov) and includes 9 million children. That staggering statistic has only gotten worse with rising prices due to inflation and wages that fail to match the cost of living.
Thankfully in our town there is a place residents can go if they need food – Helping Hands Food Pantry, Inc. (a 501C3 non-profit) at St. Charles Borromeo Church Hall Building. On Thursdays from 11am to 12:30pm anyone can stop by to get food. All that is required is a photo ID and proof of residency and for the person to complete a simple form that asks for info about the household (the number of children, adults, elderly, and pets). Dedicated volunteers then bring food out to the recipient’s vehicle. The form is important not only to provide the family the correct amount of food they need but also to track food the organization has distributed, data that is valuable when applying for the next grant. At Thanksgiving and Christmas, the pantry offers holiday meals and gifts for children and clothes.
Grants and donations of food and money have been instrumental in supporting the operation of Helping Hands for over 40 years. Food is supplied from our local Hannaford store in Modena. They donated 38,015 pounds of produce, bread, deli, and bakery items, dairy products and meats in 2022. A food bank in Cornwall delivers a box truck full of food every third Thursday which is split evenly between Helping Hands and other local food pantries. During the growing season, Four Winds Farm donates vegetables. In 2022 they donated 1,147 pounds to Helping Hands and Ulster Correctional Facility in Napanoch donated 621 pounds of fresh grown vegetables. Farm to Food Pantry Collaborative brings produce every Thursday. Even pets are helped with the Walden Humane Society donating pet food to the food pantry.
“During Covid, many food pantries in the area closed down because they were run by volunteers who were senior or elderly and vulnerable to Covid. For this reason, people started coming to Helping Hands from as far away as Monticello and Kerhonkson,” Jean LeRose,the Coordinator of Helping Hands, explained, “We will not turn anyone away but this increased need has also caused an increase in the amount of food and the number of volunteers needed to serve those who come to us.”
Many local businesses have assisted Helping Hands to serve the less fortunate: Walden Savings Bank instituted “Dress-down Fridays”. Employees who chose to wear pajamas or casual clothes donated $5 to do so. That money was then donated to local charities with Helping Hands being one of the them. Another Gardiner-based business, Gillette Creamery, provides freezer space for the pantry to store its food when the amount they have exceeds what the pantry’s 7 freezers can hold. Gardiner Library has held food and coat drives and donated to Helping Hands. Rycor in partnership with local boy scouts had a hugely successful food drive which helped the pantry immensely. Supervisor Majestic made sure the pantry was well-stocked with masks and hand sanitizer during the height of the pandemic. Uptown Attic donates clothing to the outside “Boutique” at the Helping Hands. The Rotary Club of Southern Ulster County donates money plus baby diapers and winter coats and clothing. Wallkill High School donates to Helping Hands items collected during their annual Winter Coat Drive. Man with a Van is contracted to pick up the pallets of food that are beyond the capacity of the volunteers to handle from the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley in Cornwall.
“As you can see, it takes a village to run a food pantry. Without the help from all these good neighbors, we could not continue to function,” Jean LeRose asserted.
To offset the cost of insurance and rent for the space at the St. Charles Borromeo, Helping Hands has acquired grants but it only covers part of its expenses. Financial donations would help them to continue to provide this vital service to the community.
You may donate by credit card through a GoFundMe link on their website helpinghandsofgardiner.com, or mail checks to: Helping Hands Food Pantry, Inc., PO Box 190, Gardiner, NY 12525. To volunteer, please call Jean LeRose at (845) 863-3222 or (845) 564-1153 or email Neeyajean@aol.com. To learn more, visit www.facebook.com/HelpingHandsGardiner.