LIRR Holding Food Drive For Long Island Food Banks

LONG ISLAND, NY — The Long Island Rail Road is set to host a food drive for two major Long Island food banks on its "Day of Giving" Wednesday.

The railroad asked Long Island Cares and Island Harvest to provide collection boxes that it will place at Penn Station and Grand Central Madison. The railroad will be advertising this to all customers on its trains, stations and on social media.

Rob Free, president of the Long Island Rail Road, said the company wanted to do something that would have a "quick impact on our fellow Long Islanders in need" during the holiday season.

"We identified this as a good way to show we care about Long Islanders, we are Long Islanders, and we wanted to help to the extent we can," Free told Patch.

Free said the Long Island Rail Road wanted to focus on Long Island when choosing nonprofits to give back to. Long Island Cares and Island Harvest are the two largest food banks the railroad company has a relationship with, Free said. He called it an "easy fit."

The timing is crucial to families looking to put food on the table as the holiday season approaches.

"The food drive coincides with the holidays, so it is apropos that the LIRR is sponsoring this food drive now," Katherine Fritz, Long Island Cares's vice president for development and communications, said. "We must remember that there are Long Islanders whose holidays will suffer for lack of food. The LIRR and Long Island Cares aim to see that they eat well and celebrate with the rest of us."

Food insecurity has been rising all year, Fritz said. Long Island Cares food pantries have seen a 50 percent increase in demand over the course of the year, and it is not slowing down, she said.

"In fact, the holidays present even more pressure on the food-insecure population because there are so many other ways they might be spending their money now," Fritz said. "The LIRR couldn’t have picked a better time for giving back."

Free said it is important to serve Long Islanders and give back.

"Through the year, we made a point of it to participate in events that help fellow Long Islanders," he said. "We serve Long Island. We provide excellent, reliable service. We're Long Islanders. We live on Long Island. Our kids go to school. We shop in the stores. As I always like to say, we're part of the fabric that is Long Island. We wanted to make a concerted effort this year, as one of our internal goals, to get more involved in community engagement."

The Long Island Rail Road has participated in suicide prevention walks, and in the American Cancer Society's breast cancer walk, placed 14th out of 1,300 teams with fundraising — and first in the MTA.

"I'm very proud of that," Free said.

The Long Island Rail Road is also hosting a coat drive at Penn Station and Grand Central Madison during the morning, Tuesdays through Fridays, through Dec. 20, Free said.

"I'm very proud of the Long Island Rail Road employees for stepping up in all these fundraisers that we've participated in," Free said. "I know the Long Island Rail Road will do it again to help our fellow Long Islanders in need."

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.