Roots and Wings team up with Commerce Chenango for county-wide food drive
NORWICH – In recognition of Hunger Action Month, Roots and Wings and Commerce Chenango are jointly working to promote a county-wide food drive to benefit food pantries and help residents in these tough economic times.
The food drive, which officially got underway on Patriot’s Day earlier this week, will be open to donations until Sept. 28. Collection sites are established at NBT branches around the county and in Norwich at the Eaton Center and One City Plaza. Commerce Chenango and Catholic Charities Roots and Wings will collect and disburse food items to 18 different food pantries.
Catholic Charities Director of Community Outreach Gary Quarella said the drive is a worth while cause and a chance to extend a helping hand when food distribution sites need it most.
“All the food pantries across the county are struggling,” Quarella said, citing declining donations throughout the year. “In between holidays, people tend to forget that there is a need, but the need doesn’t go down,” he said.
A recent regional survey spanning 11 counties, conducted by the Food Bank of Central New York, found that since 2006, people turning to emergency food programs increased 82 percent. In addition, 73 percent of households that access emergency food programs are ‘food insecure’, meaning they don’t always know where their next meal will come from, and of those, 32 percent are ‘very food insecure’, which often results in a reduction of food rationing among family members.
In Chenango County alone, the Roots and Wings emergency food pantry served 512 families (1,683 family members) and 25,245 meals in the month of August, said Kathy Darrah, food pantry coordinator. They’re the highest numbers during a one month period in the agency’s 14-year history.
“Last year, we served 4,700 families, so we’re possibly going to crest over 5,000 families this year. Given that we have a (county) population of just over 51,000, it’s a big number. People really are struggling,” said Quarella.
“It’s really important that we all pull together as a county, as a community, to provide food to these local food banks,” stated Roots and Wings Program Director Melinda Mandeville. “Increased demand combined with dwindling state and federal funding streams are causing financial stress for emergency food pantries across our region.”
It’s those dwindling state and federal funds that are what’s most alarming to the agency, noted Quarella. “Local community foundations are getting hit harder, too because our agencies don’t know where to turn. So we turn to local foundations for (financial) help,” he added. “We’re not just trying to give people a handout. We’re tying to give them a hand up so they can move forward.”
For more information about how to get involved with the food drive, call Commerce Chenango at 334-1400 or Roots and Wings at 336-7897.
The food drive, which officially got underway on Patriot’s Day earlier this week, will be open to donations until Sept. 28. Collection sites are established at NBT branches around the county and in Norwich at the Eaton Center and One City Plaza. Commerce Chenango and Catholic Charities Roots and Wings will collect and disburse food items to 18 different food pantries.
Catholic Charities Director of Community Outreach Gary Quarella said the drive is a worth while cause and a chance to extend a helping hand when food distribution sites need it most.
“All the food pantries across the county are struggling,” Quarella said, citing declining donations throughout the year. “In between holidays, people tend to forget that there is a need, but the need doesn’t go down,” he said.
A recent regional survey spanning 11 counties, conducted by the Food Bank of Central New York, found that since 2006, people turning to emergency food programs increased 82 percent. In addition, 73 percent of households that access emergency food programs are ‘food insecure’, meaning they don’t always know where their next meal will come from, and of those, 32 percent are ‘very food insecure’, which often results in a reduction of food rationing among family members.
In Chenango County alone, the Roots and Wings emergency food pantry served 512 families (1,683 family members) and 25,245 meals in the month of August, said Kathy Darrah, food pantry coordinator. They’re the highest numbers during a one month period in the agency’s 14-year history.
“Last year, we served 4,700 families, so we’re possibly going to crest over 5,000 families this year. Given that we have a (county) population of just over 51,000, it’s a big number. People really are struggling,” said Quarella.
“It’s really important that we all pull together as a county, as a community, to provide food to these local food banks,” stated Roots and Wings Program Director Melinda Mandeville. “Increased demand combined with dwindling state and federal funding streams are causing financial stress for emergency food pantries across our region.”
It’s those dwindling state and federal funds that are what’s most alarming to the agency, noted Quarella. “Local community foundations are getting hit harder, too because our agencies don’t know where to turn. So we turn to local foundations for (financial) help,” he added. “We’re not just trying to give people a handout. We’re tying to give them a hand up so they can move forward.”
For more information about how to get involved with the food drive, call Commerce Chenango at 334-1400 or Roots and Wings at 336-7897.
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