Community Organizes Volunteers for Emergency Food Distribution

Community organizations came together to proactively organize an outreach campaign to contact local residents, including homebound individuals, who may need emergency food assistance ahead of a possible City lockdown this week.

"We're proud to serve our community at this critical moment. Our volunteers will continue providing emergency food assistance even if our City is locked down," stated Pedro Rodriguez, executive director of the La Jornada food pantry. "However, in order to sustain this critical service, we need volunteers and money. Please help us help our community."

Volunteers from La Jornada, the Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce, Kissena Synergy, Mel for Progress, Gutsier Living, Flushing Interfaith Council, and other community organizations will be mobilizing volunteers to call and deliver food to local residents who indicate they need emergency food assistance. Anyone interested in volunteering can apply via Google Form.

"In this period of Covid-19 crisis in NYC, the elderly and the disabled are our neighbors who face the most food insecurity in our community," stated Taehoon Kim, president of the Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce. "We stand with the volunteers at La Jornada to deliver food to those in need around Flushing in case of a shelter in place policy going into effect."

Volunteers will be using another online Google Form to collect information, including the name, address, phone number, and language spoken by the individuals needing assistance. The information will be used to schedule appointments for delivery of emergency food supplies by other volunteers who will walk, bicycle, or drive to the individuals needing assistance.

"In view of the possible city-wide lock down, our community is proactively organizing an emergency food distribution network and we are encouraging faith leaders to reach out to their congregations to assess whether homebound individuals need emergency food assistance," stated Jack Chang, president of the Flushing Interfaith Council. "Together, our community will get through this stressful and chaotic times. Please stay safe"

"I am working to mobilize my large group of campaign volunteers into community helpers, so we are glad to join forces to help deliver food to those who are homebound due to this pandemic," stated Nuala O'Doherty-Naranjo, candidate for NYS Assembly in 34th District. Nuala joins a number of political candidates shifting resources from their campaigns to support mutual aid efforts in affected communities throughout Queens.

"Now more than ever it's important we come together as a community to aid in efforts to help care for our most vulnerable neighbors. We are mobilizing our phonebanking operation to check-in with our neighbors and assist in this coordinated effort to provide community assistance and encourage those who can, and are healthy to join us," stated Melquiades Gagarin, a community advocate running as a candidate in New York's Sixth Congressional District.

Today's announcement was made at the new location of the La Jornada food pantry at the Bland Houses Community Center located at 133-36 Roosevelt Ave, Flushing, NY 11354. La Jornada will act as an emergency food distribution center during the coronavirus crisis. Food distribution at the site is currently scheduled for Thursdays and Fridays from 12pm noon to 9pm at night; and, Saturdays from 9am to 12pm. To reduce safety risks associated with crowding during distribution, advance registration is required at pedrolajornada@gmail.com or 917-880-5693.

"Kissena Synergy stands with community partners to support our neighbors and seniors dealing with food insecurity and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our hope is to provide some relief and comfort during this unusually trying time," stated Leona Chin, Administrator of Kissena Synergy. "We are all in this together and will get through this together."

"The TA Queens Volunteer Team is happy to join this wonderful initiative. Biking will significantly extend the reach and enable us to serve more people. This is exactly how to support each other during this very frightening time," stated Jim Burke, Volunteer Chair of the TransAlt Western Queens Committee, which is mobilizing bicycle riders to help with emergency food deliveries.

Community groups came together after news reports of a possible "shelter in place" order from the mayor of New York City this week. New York City currently has 814 confirmed cases of individuals infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus, up 351 from the previous day. Cities in New
Jersey and California are already requiring residents to stay at home except for essential travel.

"Our current COVID-19 pandemic not only reveals the ongoing challenges of hunger and availability of quality, healthy food in this immigrant community, but also deeply highlights the government's unjust social and health inequalities and lack of preparedness for short term and long term solutions," stated Shweta Parmar, Ayurvedic Eastern Medicine Practitioner at GutsierLiving. "Beyond the virus, we are witnessing a social disease. As economic instability rises at this time, so does poverty, hunger, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual diseases for individual, family and the community. It is essential to address the basic human right of access to food, fuel for LIFE! Volunteers are filling this void."

"After months of government inaction, New Yorkers are realizing the only people who will save us are ourselves. That's the impetus for today's announcement: our community won't let our friends and neighbors fend for themselves. We're here to help and together, we will survive," stated John Choe, executive director of the Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce.