BY ANDY OLIVIAN
The Center of Family Life (CFL) is bringing fresh produce grown by Latinx immigrant farmers to people in Sunset Park who wouldn’t be able to afford it on their own – just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday. Since November 16, CFL’s food pantry has been offering a selective supply of organic food to community members as part of a “New York Food for New York Families” initiative funded by a grant from the US Department of Agriculture.
“It’s a beautiful initiative because we’re able to help our families,” said Smilie Filomeno, 51, CFL’s program director, “and the initiative is for us to help families with food insecurity, but at the same time to give them healthier choices.” CFL is a neighborhood-based family and social services organization that provides children with after-school programs that build skills and promote academic and social development. For adults, it provides them with job readiness and placement services as well as assisting in public benefits.
Mimomex Farm and Tello Farms are partnered with this initiative that spans 12 weeks in the fall and then resumes again in May. Mimomex Farm, located in Goshen, New York, provides the pantry with vegetables, fruits, and herbs. Meanwhile, Tello Farms in Red Hook, New York, provides fresh eggs.
“We take pride that we are helping these farmers that are also helping us and that they’re giving back to their communities,” said Filomeno referring to the vegetables and fruits that are commonly used in Latin American cooking.
Leomaris Fernandez, 54, food pantry coordinator, oversees the food orders, making sure the shelves are stocked. She has a sense of fulfillment serving the neighborhood where she was raised.
“I know that I’m here for my community, and I will always be. When you have someone in front of you and you know that they don’t know what their next meal is going to be or when it’s going to be that’s when it’s, you know, I know that I’m doing something good,” said Fernandez.
The plan to provide healthy organic food has been an ongoing success as so far they’ve served 3,200 individuals and over 2,600 families from the neighborhood’s Latin and Chinese communities, according to CFL’s online newsletter.
“To see the faces of the clients when they’re receiving these products, and our whole food package, you know, it really makes us feel very proud. But also we know that there’s still more work to be done,” said Filomeno. “The homeless population is increasing. So that’s where we’re like, wait a minute, we’re doing the work, and it’s great work that we’re doing but we see that the need is still very prevalent.”
Wilfredo Pedrero, 63, food pantry clerk, has been working with the CFL’s community services program for 17 years. Pedrero helps open the pantry and distribute the food.
“A lot of them always give us their blessing and I tell them, thank you, you know, so I feel that we’re blessed,” said Pedrero who enjoys helping people and being part of a cause that takes care of the neighborhood. “I’m hoping to be here until the day I die.” With the influx of migrants coming to the city, the food pantry has been sharing its resources with both the migrants and the homeless as the pantry never turns anybody away.
“We’ve had kind of a strain on how much we can purchase and how much we can give out. Sometimes we’re trying to find ways to purchase items that are non-perishables that they can use if they don’t have a stove. So it changes the dynamic of what we’re purchasing to give out in the pantry,” said Filomeno. Although their pantry is small, she reiterates the compassion that people need when coming to a food pantry. “We serve them with dignity and respect, and we do our best to welcome them in and give and share of what we have in our pantry and other services that we may be able to provide them,” she said.
In addition to its collaboration with the farms, the pantry is partnered with City Harvest, Food Bank of New York City, United Way, and private donors. This support allows the pantry to operate 52 weeks a year.
A first-time visitor to the pantry is not required to show identification to pick up food. However, the pantry asks return visitors for a photo ID and the number of members in their households to calculate the size of the food package for them, since the pantry is only for emergency supplements of three meals a day for three days. Clients can pick up nutritious and organic produce from Tuesday through Thursday. Now that the winter is coming, clients can receive packages of dry and canned goods, as well as fresh and frozen proteins.
With Thanksgiving a week away, Filomeno feels empowered knowing that the pantry’s role in bettering the community through giving out food provides a sense of care for one another.
“Here at the Center for Family Life and the community service program is that it’s about unifying people, diverse cultures unifying, and being in a spirit of gratitude for what we do have,” said Filomeno.