By GREGORY ZELLER //
Long Island’s leading hunger-relief organization took Hunger Action Day literally this year, ceremoniously welcoming its latest food pantry.
Long Island Cares Inc.-The Harry Chapin Regional Food Bank opened its newest facility Tuesday on Rockaway Avenue in Valley Stream. The grand opening of the West Nassau Center for Food Assistance & Community Support – Long Island Cares’ ninth Island-based facility – was held on Hunger Action Day, a centerpiece of Hunger Action Month, the annual food-insecurity spotlight shined by Chicago-based national 501(c)3 nonprofit Feeding America.
The new pantry is scheduled to open at 9 a.m. Mondays through Fridays, with “Military Appreciation Tuesdays” reserved for veterans and current service members. Besides that restriction, it will be open to all who need it – and there are many who need it in Nassau County’s western neighborhoods, according to Lourdes Taglialatela, Long Island Cares’ on-site program coordinator.
Michaella Solages: Invaluable effort.
“Our new Valley Stream satellite is a beacon of hope for residents in Western Nassau County who are combating food insecurity,” Taglialatela noted. “We are committed to providing essential support to those in need, and our satellite sites play a crucial role in fulfilling this mission.”
In addition to its home base in Hauppauge, Long Island Cares – founded in 1980 by singer/songwriter and activist Harry Chapin – already operates satellite pantries in Freeport, Bethpage, Lindenhurst, Huntington Station and Hampton Bays, with secondary facilities in Hauppauge and Lindenhurst.
The charity organization also supports hundreds of churches, community centers and agencies across Nassau and Suffolk focused on fighting hunger – a major problem on Long Island, where food insecurity and a lack of equitable food access (based on racial and cultural barriers) are at all-time highs.
Long Island Cares credits its ninth satellite location largely to New York State Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages, who approached the food bank in May 2022 – during the late stages of the COVID 19 pandemic – to discuss ways of bolstering food-distribution efforts at Valley Stream Presbyterian Church, where Haitian and Caribbean immigrant families were struggling.
Hunger helper: The new satellite pantry is well-stocked with food for those who need it most.
Solages and U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-5th Dist.), whose Congressional district covers parts of Valley Stream, lobbied to secure $560,000 in state and federal funding for the cause, according to Long Island Cares, allowing the food bank to establish a permanent Valley Stream location.
Solages called the charity organization “an invaluable partner in combating food insecurity and providing critical assistance to families in our community affected by the affordability crisis.
“The new West Nassau Center for Food Assistance and Community Support will offer essential resources and support, directly addressing the needs of our neighbors,” the assemblywoman added. “The diverse programs available will have a lasting impact on our most vulnerable families.”
Jessica Rosati, Long Island Cares’ vice president for programs and community services, said the new facility would not have been possible “without the support of our elected officials and community partners, [who] work together in an effort to improve the lives of others,” while President and CEO Paule Pachter said the Rockaway Avenue satellite once again puts the food bank on the food-insecurity front lines.
“[This] brings us closer to the community by providing emergency food support to those in need,” Pachter said in a statement. “We look forward to working with both the local business community and government to respond to the populations’ needs.”
