Community Corner
Grassroots Group Queens Together Launches Food Pantry In Astoria
A new food pantry in Astoria is doing its part to keep hundreds of families from going hungry during the coronavirus pandemic.
ASTORIA, QUEENS — A new food pantry in Astoria is doing its part to keep hundreds of families from going hungry as New York City continues to fight the coronavirus outbreak.
Launched by Queens Together, a grassroots group formed to support local food businesses during the pandemic, the "Veggie Days" weekly pantry will hand out fresh produce, pantry items and prepared meals at the Teen Center of the Variety Boys & Girls Club.
Four hundred people picked up food items like fresh tortillas from Tortilleria Nixtamal and vegetables sourced through Lucky’s Tomato Farms on Wednesday, which was the pantry's second week, according to Queens Together co-founders Jaime-Faye Bean and Jonathan Forgash.
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Prepared meals from Green Top Farms, La Adelita de Woodside and The Jeffrey Craft Beer & Bites were also available.
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Families are connected to the pantry through partners like P.S. 171, Newcomers High School, CIANA and local houses of faith.
"Everyone's coming together to help their neighbors," said Forgash, one of the Queens Together co-founders. "It's really beautiful."
The "Veggie Days" pantry is open every Wednesday from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Teen Center of the Variety Boys & Girls Club on the corner of 21st Street and 30th Drive.
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