A new food pantry has just opened in a northeast Rochester neighborhood, and even though it was a soft opening which wasn’t really promoted, a number of people went there over the weekend.
That’s according to Father Daniel Ruiz, co-director of the organization Rochester Hope which is partnering with Foodlink in the new food pantry located at St. Michael’s Church on North Clinton Avenue.
Rochester Hope’s websitenotes that the pantry will serve the “ the hungriest zip codes in the whole of New York State,” and co-director of the organization, Father Daniel Ruiz, said that due to inflation and other factors, “people are really struggling right now.”
He said that the pantry opened without much publicity on Saturday, and they were able to serve 125 households. Ruiz anticipates that number growing quickly and word gets around about its availability and he said that St. Michael’s is a good location for it.
“It’s a place that has always been like a beacon of hope for the Latino community and for the neighborhood in general,” said Ruiz. “People feel safe coming to the church, even if they don't belong to the church, they know that they will be welcomed and treated with respect, and so so I think it's a great location for the food pantry.”
Ruiz said the pantry is set up in a way that should make people using it feel more comfortable about getting that assistance.
“We are hoping to do that in a way that brings as much dignity as possible to the people we serve, “ and Ruiz added that, “the pantry has been set up like a small grocery store, and people come in and basically make their own selections.”
The new food pantry is only open on Saturdays for now, as organizers try to increase the number of volunteers that run it. They eventually hope to be open four days a week.
