Food Donations Pour In As Visitors Admire North Pole Airport

NEW CITY, NY — Rocklanders are driving out in droves to watch the stupendous synchronized holiday light display that is the Cirlin family's North Pole Airport.

And they're leaving a little something in return — something that's adding up to an enormous gift for Rocklanders in need.

The Cirlin family has shared their exuberant and creative display with the public for five years now, every year adding hand-built structures, lights and interactive displays, and always collecting donations for Angel Flight and People to People of Rockland. In the past the family collected new winter clothing to give to People to People for distribution to clients. Known as P2P, it is the county's largest food pantry.

In this coronavirus year, handling clothes seemed unsafe, plus the Cirlins heard P2P's food stores had really taken a hit — so they switched to asking for donations of non-perishable food.

The response has been open-hearted.

"We literally empty the bin once an hour. Last weekend alone we had over 1,000 lbs of food picked up for P2P," Gary Cirlin told Patch. "It’s so wonderful and inspiring to see."

The community's response has heartened Diane Serratore, executive director of People to People.

"I've lived in the county all my life and still every year I am overwhelmed by the generosity of Rockland residents," she told Patch.

Serratore admitted she has been very worried by the economic devastation wrought locally by the coronavirus.

Since the pandemic began, the number of people needing help from the food pantry has risen by a third or more. In fact, in December, P2P, which usually helps 1,200 clients a month, provided food for 2,000 households and gift cards for another 700. "We know there are more people needing help. Times are tough," she said.

Now P2P gets to spend a month on the receiving end, as donations are dropped into the collection bin at 12 Oriole Road. "We can't do this without community support," Serratore said. "We don't get a lot of government funding. We are literally people to people, people helping each other."

There's still time to drive by to admire the display and to drop something off while you do. The show will be up until the beginning of 2021.

"We don’t have an exact date yet. It is always based on the weather for cleanup," Cirlin said. "But we have always told people on or about New Year’s give or take a day or so."

After all, giving is the reason for the season.

As one visitor wrote on the North Pole Airport's Facebook page afterward, "when we dropped food in the bin it also gave us the opportunity to talk to and show our 5 & 2 year old how even the smallest people can help those in need."

Patch has partnered with Feeding America to help raise awareness on behalf of the millions of Americans facing hunger. Feeding America, which supports 200 food banks across the country, estimates that in 2020, more than 50 million Americans will not have enough nutritious food to eat due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. This is a Patch social good project; Feeding America receives 100 percent of donations. Find out how you can donate in your community or find a food pantry near you.