2 LI Food Banks Among Beneficiaries Of Tri-State Food Drive

LONG ISLAND, NY — A one-day food drive is set to benefit Long Island Cares, Island Harvest, and six other food banks in the Tri-State area.

The drive is scheduled from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. June 1 at approximately 200 Stop & Shop locations, according to NBC/Telemundo, which worked with the supermarket chain to organize the event.

Twenty-five stores each were assigned to Long Island Cares and Island Harvest.

Non-perishable goods and financial donations will help eight regional Feeding America food banks restock their shelves and replenish supplies, including the two on Long Island. People can visit any Stop & Shop to donate non-perishable food, personal hygiene items or round up their regular grocery totals to the nearest dollar at the register, which will be donated to the local food bank.

Local food banks need the most help during spring and summer once the holidays end, causing a dimmer spotlight on food insecurity, according to NBC.

The 2022 Map the Meal Gap report for Long Island estimates that 221,190 people on Long Island are food insecure, an increase of 58.3 percent from the 2021 estimate of 139,760 people, according to a joint news release from Long Island Cares and Island Harvest Food Bank announced.

In 2022, the estimated number of children living with food insecurity is 44,780, a 63.4 percent increase from the estimated 27,580 children living with food insecurity in 2021.

Paule Pachter, CEO of Long Island Cares - The Harry Chapin Regional Food Bank, called the increase in hunger "quite disturbing."

"Hunger is a year-round problem that is not going away," said Eric Lerner, president and general manager of NBC 4 New York in a news release. "Our food bank partners also tell us that this is the time of year they need help the most. That is why we created Feeding our Families, a massive, one-day food drive generating tons of non-perishable donations for our neighbors in need."

Lerner said supporting the work of Tri-State food banks has been a priority for the WNBC team, and that the group is prepared to roll its sleeves up once again.

"We’re so excited to once again join forces with NBC 4 New York and Telemundo 47 in this tremendous, multi-state effort to help fight hunger in our local communities," said Jennifer Barr, Stop & Shop director of external communications and community relations. "Making sure our neighbors have access to healthy food and personal care items is important to us – and if we all work together, we can make a huge difference for those in need in the Tri-State area."

Increases in costs of food, transportation and utilities have "negatively impacted" the entire community, including food banks, said Cristina Schwarz, president and general manager of Telemundo 47.

"This additional financial burden has become yet another obstacle in the fight against hunger, making our Alimentando a Nuestras Familias food drive even more timely," Schwarz said. "A small donation on June 1 will have a huge impact in the lives of our friends and neighbors, and we encourage all of our viewers to join us, however they can, for this important community effort."

Pachter said Long Island Cares is "very excited" to once again collaborate with NBC Universal and Telemundo for the "Feeding Our Families" drive.

"Food banks are seeing a dramatic increase in the number of families in the Tri-State area struggling with food insecurity," Pachter told Patch. "We’re also very grateful to our corporate partners at Stop & Shop for continuing to host this event. Stop & Shop and NBC Universal have made food insecurity and hunger assistance a major pillar of their corporate priorities, and we look forward to the community generously supporting this event as we work to restock our food pantries on Long Island once again."

The Stop & Shop stores benefiting Long Island Cares are: Farmingville, Holbrook, Southampton, Hampton Bays, East Hampton, East Islip, Setauket, Woodmere, Bay Shore, Deer Park, Huntington (x2), Riverhead, Lake Ronkonkoma, Miller Place, Farmingdale, Rocky Point, Sayville, Amityville, South Setauket, Shirley, Baldwin, Massapequa, Merrick and North Bellmore.

The Stop & Shop locations assigned to Island Harvest are: Carle Place, Glen Cove, Port Washington, East Meadow, Hempstead, Hicksville, New Hyde Park, Oceanside (x2), West Hempstead, Long Beach, Greenvale, Franklin Square, East Northport, Northport, Woodbury, Levittown, Smithtown, Oyster Bay, Seaford, Coram, Medford, West Babylon (x2) and West Islip.

The program was created in 2017 after food banks told NBC/Telemundo the greatest need for food came from January through September.

Patch has partnered with Feeding America since 2020 to help raise awareness in our local communities of hunger, a persistent national problem exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Feeding America, which supports 200 food banks and 60,000 local meals programs across the country, estimates that nearly 34 million people, including 9 million children — about 1 in 6 Americans — are living with food insecurity. 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.