Hunger action heroes tackle food insecurity

This article, part of a comprehensive series on hunger action in Westchester County developed in partnership with The Rivertowns Dispatch, examines a few of the people and organizations delivering solutions to fight hunger across Westchester.

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Anthony Pereira, operations assistant, works closely with local farms, grocery stores and food recovery partners to rescue fresh, healthy items that might otherwise go to waste. CCNW PHOTO

Mastering the food pantry’s operations with ‘patience, creativity and calm’

Anthony Pereira plays a vital role in keeping the Community Center of Northern Westchester food pantry, temporarily relocated from Katonah to Bedford Hills, running smoothly. That’s no small feat in a space that’s always bustling and often bursting at the seams. 

As operations assistant, he helps receive and distribute more than 800,000 pounds of food each year — over 15,000 pounds every week — to more than 3,200 families. Through his steady coordination and focus, CCNW provides over 100 families a day with a full week’s worth of nutritious food.

Pereira works closely with local farms, grocery stores and food recovery partners to rescue fresh, healthy items that might otherwise go to waste. CCNW officials note that he’s equally committed to sustainability — breaking down and recycling countless cardboard boxes, composting food scraps, and finding creative ways to reuse materials — reflecting his respect for both people and the planet.

“Running a pantry of this size means handling constant surprises — delivery trucks arriving early or late, limited storage space, and donations that change by the hour,” said Clare Murray, CCNW executive director. “Anthony navigates it all with patience, creativity, and calm, keeping operations on track even when things get hectic. Whether rearranging pallets, troubleshooting last-minute shortages, repairing wheels on shopping carts, or rallying volunteers to meet a sudden rush, he finds a way to make it work.”

Murray said that beyond the numbers, Pereira’s impact is personal. “He greets every donor, client and volunteer with kindness and respect, knowing that care and compassion are just as important as the food itself. Thanks to his steady presence and dedication, our pantry continues to make a meaningful impact — helping to reduce hunger for neighbors in need.”

— Jeff Morris

The pandemic was the impetus for Christian Ayala to begin working at The Pantry in Mount Kisco. MARTIN WILBUR PHOTO

Helping others brings pantry employee closer to his roots

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, the car service that Christian Ayala owns was forced to shut down, leaving him without a job and extra time on his hands. 

Ayala started helping several organizations and institutions, and began working at The Pantry, formerly known as the Mount Kisco Interfaith Food Pantry, which operates at the United Methodist Church.

Ayala, an Ecuadorian native, is The Pantry’s distributions and guest relations manager. Helping keep the operation running smoothly on the twice-a-week distribution days, is a way for him to lend a hand to other families who need help in the community.

“It brought me back to my roots and no better way to make a community than helping people,” Ayala said. “It’s my community and about 85% of the people that we serve are from Latin America, so it’s building a bridge with those people with the language barriers and just understanding them culturally.”

Ayala also enjoys knowing that The Pantry provides a nutritious assortment of food. There is nothing that the legion of volunteers who turn out to help would dispense that he wouldn’t eat himself.

“Somehow, because of generous people, institutions with The Pantry, we were able to make it every week, we haven’t reduced the amount of food that we give to people and the quality, which is more important, because we want to give dignity to these people,” he said.

He estimated that The Pantry provides food to people who have immigrated from more than 20 countries among the hundreds each week who seek assistance. Regardless of the demographic, The Pantry stands ready to help any local residents who face food insecurity.

“I consider it the best pantry in northern Westchester and I’m proud of it with the team that we have,” Ayala said.

— Martin Wilbur

Allison Turcan of D.I.G. Farm leads a variety of  food assistance projects in Westchester.  Contributed photo

It’s all about ‘dealing in good’ for this busy farmer

As the founder and the farmer at D.I.G. Farm in North Salem, a nonprofit focused on getting people reconnected to farms and local foods, Allison Turcan manages to handle multiple initiatives simultaneously.

One of those initiatives, the Westchester Local Food Project, invites participants to volunteer in one of their community gardens or in one of their kitchens to prepare meals from produce rescued from fellow local farmers, all to help community members in need. Volunteers can also attend cooking classes to learn how to prepare meals and preserve the fruits of the harvest; this program supports school gardens during the summer when they would normally be dormant. The project supports the local farming community by selling their produce at farmers markets to bring them extra revenue.

“We manage the community farm in Bedford Hills,” said Turcan, referring to Sugar Hill Farm at Westchester Land Trust’s headquarters campus. “Our cooking program cooks meals at Presbyterian churches in Bedford and Mount Vernon. We also have a community garden at Mount Vernon, and we do the garden at the Westchester County Department of Corrections in Valhalla, where we work with the ladies and cook with them.” 

Turcan also oversees a program that rescues excess food from two private schools in the area and donates it to the Community Center of Northern Westchester and The Pantry in Mount Kisco.

Turcan said the spark for all of her work came from a year she spent in France. “I was blown away by the difference in the food system in France versus here,” she explained. “In France, you have a direct connection with the person who produces your food. That inspired me to create the organization.” She said a culture that connects people to their food sources is important for sustainability and health.

As for the D.I.G. name, Turcan explained it stands for “Dealing In Good.” 

“It’s my theory that the more good choices you make, it leads you down a good road,” she said.

— Jeff Morris

 Longtime volunteer Ellen Klein works most Wednesday mornings during distribution day at the Dobbs Ferry Food Pantry. MARTI WILBUR PHOTO

‘People need me,’ and food pantry volunteer answers the call

Ellen Klein has had a history of volunteering in her home community. She was already assisting the local historical society, when in 2013, the expansion of the Dobbs Ferry Food Pantry and having more time on her hands provided her the opportunity to help others in need.

Klein, a retired project director for market researchers, is the pantry’s longest-serving volunteer during its evolution from a small collection of items to an operation that now provides hundreds of pounds of food each week to dozens of struggling households in Dobbs Ferry, Ardsley, Irvington, and parts of Greenburgh.

Every Wednesday morning, you can find her somewhere around the South Presbyterian Church on Broadway, the church that she attends, staffing a table to help dole out the products or at the computer inside to log in clients.

“I come because I feel people need me,” Klein said. “Over the years, my role has dwindled. I mean, I used to lift 50-pound bags of potatoes. I can’t do that anymore, so I show up after all the heavy lifting is done. But I still feel it’s important to come.”

It’s a responsibility Klein takes seriously, especially since the pandemic when upwards of 160 families stopped by weekly because of the shutdown and the depths of the crisis. With the anticipated problems caused by the current federal government shutdown, including discontinuation of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Klein said pantries like Dobbs Ferry’s will become indispensable.

“It’s going to remind us of the early days of COVID,” she said. “We had maybe 175 families a week. I think our leadership is bracing for something like that.”

— Martin Wilbur

Volunteer Kristina Georges schedules food pickups and deliveries for County Harvest.  CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Managing County Harvest's food pickups is 'joyful work'

Entirely run and staffed by volunteers, County Harvest operates like a well-oiled machine.

One of four people who keep it running smoothly is Kristina Georges, who for two and a half years has been in charge of scheduling its food pickups and deliveries. Previously, she was one of the drivers, whose schedules she now supervises. It was an indirect path.

“I had heard about the organization through my kids’ school and the other volunteer mothers,” Georges recalled. “I had always been interested in food and nutrition, health and wellness, and wanted to do something. So, I got in touch with a friend who was also involved and signed up to do some deliveries. And I had always been in communications, and they kind of needed some help on the board. I said I’d be happy to be more involved helping with the food rescue runs and also as a board member.”  

County Harvest has over 400 volunteers. “Every volunteer I’ve interacted with during these years — every interaction I’ve ever had, phone or email — they’re all such pleasant, happy people,” Georges said. “It’s such good work, and we all are buoyed by it. It’s really joyful.”

Tasks are split up among the board members, and while Georges is the schedule coordinator, they all pitch in when needed. 

“We have a four-person operations team, and we are in touch daily,” she says. “I have a counterpart who is in communication with the agencies we serve, and someone else who is in touch with the donors. We all cooperate and coordinate and handle any crises. Some days things run smoothly and I don’t need to do anything.” But if the need arises, Georges occasionally still gets behind the wheel herself.

— Jeff Morris

This editorially-independent series on hunger action is presented with support from the PepsiCo Foundation.