Hauppauge Uses Eagles Food Pantry To Give Back

HAUPPAUGE, NY — A food pantry born out of students' desire to help fight food insecurity has found success at Hauppauge High School, according to the school district.

In fall 2022, a group of students discussed the issue of food insecurity and recognized the need for food drives and possibly, a food pantry, in their building. Fast forward to April 2023, when under the Hauppauge for Humanity club’s umbrella, the Eagles Food Pantry was born.

The pantry was founded by students Colin Buscarino and Nick Sumwalt as well as current Hauppauge Middle School Assistant Principal Kristy Pagliari while she was still an assistant principal at the high school.

In January 2023, Pagliari took a group of teachers to visit food pantries in three other Long Island schools. From there, the team worked together to generate ideas. Later that winter, Pagliari put together all the necessary paperwork and submitted it to the Board of Education to become a charter.

In early spring 2023, a food drive was held to collect palettes worth of inventory. Hauppauge High School students, under the leadership of Buscarino and Sumwalt and overseen by Pagliari, organized and stocked the pantry. The pantry officially opened its doors in April 2023.

"During free periods, we’ll all come down and do the inventory and pack orders," said officer Avery Marchese, according to a news release. "It feels very rewarding being able to do this and help other families you know are in need."

By the fall, the community was made more aware of the service and the pantry became a districtwide initiative.

At the same time, French teacher Simone Pavlides took over as the high school adviser, while Pagliari began coordinating pantry needs between the district’s five schools. School social worker Shannon Griffin became the family coordinator. Everyone, including Buscarino and Sumwalt, met to form a plan for pantry requests.

The district’s social workers identify families who could potentially benefit from the program and assist them in filling out a request. Requests are kept anonymous, only known by each school’s social worker, and the club is run by high school seniors who receive community service hours for their participation.

The pantry is currently run by Buscarino and Sumwalt, the president and vice president, respectively, as well as officers Brianna Burton, Sofia Kalaitzis and Marchese. These students stock the shelves of the pantry with food and hygienic products, package orders, and run monthly food drives, typically with specific items in mind.

"The goal for this year was to transform the pantry from a few shelves to an actual, functioning
and organized pantry," Buscarino said.

In March, the students moved the pantry from a smaller second floor space to a spacious first floor room.

"For the first two weeks when we moved everything down here, every single person was in here for three periods a day to make sure everything was accounted for and done right," Sumwalt said.

Burton said students dedicating their free time to the pantry shows how much they care.

"...Even districtwide, people are so giving and compassionate towards our cause," Burton said. "It’s very heartwarming and rewarding."

Buscarino said he has put his heart and soul into the project.

"I’ve loved every second of it," he said. "It’s become so much more than I ever thought it could be."