Community Spirit

Here in Rockland County we are always looking for ways to help out our family, friends and neighbors. And despite facing a worldwide pandemic we continue to see our residents step up and help out those in need.

Earlier this week, Rockland Community Against Hunger (RCAH) oversaw the Get Fresh food distribution from Building A at our Pomona Health Complex. The previous site of this distribution was closed due to COVID-19 and so we jumped into action. With the help of the United Way of Rockland County and TOUCH (Together Our Unity Can Heal) we secured volunteers to help with the distribution.

Thousands of pounds of food were distributed from the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley to over a dozen pantries and feeding programs throughout Rockland. Collectively, these pantries serve over 30,000 meals per month and the need is growing exponentially with the COVID-19 crisis.

Typically, each pantry would come with a number of volunteers to load the food into their vehicles. However, because of the COVID-19 crisis, we had to operate a little differently. We arranged to have the pantries pick up food thru a drive thru. The Food Bank delivered the food and arranged the pallets at least 6-8 feet apart and volunteers worked independently to load food from an assigned pallet and load boxes directly into the pantry’s vehicle. Volunteers were provided with masks and gloves.

This food distribution will go a long way towards providing healthy, nutritious meals to those who are in need. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact our economy more people will need help putting food on the table and we urge everyone who is able to get involved and help out.

If you or someone you know is in need of food, you can visit www.Rocklandhunger.org or call 2-1-1 to find out how to get help.

And if you are one of the many residents looking to help out please visit www.uwrc.org to find out how you can get involved. They list volunteer opportunities at non-profit agencies all around Rockland.

I know that this is a difficult time for all of us but finding a way to make a positive difference in someone else’s life is one of the ways we can push back against the stress and anxiety that so many of us are feeling. Seeing these positive actions play out time and time again fills me with great pride as your County Executive and gives me faith that here in Rockland we will emerge from this crisis stronger and better together.