La Jornada and Queens Museum Cultural Food Pantry

A group of women of color, work together to sort through a tower of food donation boxes. Most of them are wearing a purple La Jornada volunteer shirt. One of them is wearing a gray sweater and is reaching into a shopping cart, overflowing with light brown plastic grocery bags. They are all masked and working outdoors amongst trees.

In collaboration with La Jornada, the Queens Museum hosts a weekly food distribution program that began in June 2020, providing increased food security to our most immediate neighbors during the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

Corona, Queens was at the epicenter of the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic that hit New York in 2020, experiencing some of the highest numbers of Covid cases and deaths in the city. As Black, Brown, and immigrant communities have been disproportionately impacted by Covid-19 across the country, the largely immigrant communities living in Corona continue to face devastating loss and food insecurity due to unemployment and unequal access to resources and government assistance.

 

In order to help alleviate the demand on existing food pantries and relief efforts in Corona, the La Jornada and Queens Museum Cultural Food Pantry serves on average 400 families weekly on Wednesdays, distributing a week’s worth of fresh and nonperishable food items. Over 50,000 families have visited the pantry since June 2020. The operations are supported by over 120+ volunteers from within the immediate community – current partnerships include Commonpoint Queens and Elmhurst Corona Recovery Collaborative. Significant support is provided by Flushing Meadows Corona Park.

 

In 2020, the food pantry was managed in partnership with Together We Can Community Resource Center, and partnerships to date have included Flushing Meadows Corona Park; Together We Can Community Resource Center Inc.; Elmhurst Community Partnership; NY Cares; Hispanic Federation; Commonpoint Queens; Elmhurst Corona Recovery Collaborative; Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield; Fidelis Care; Queens Community House; Hunger Free NYC; New York Health and Hospitals Elmhurst Hospital; Coalicion Mexicana; MetroPlus; Birth Justice Defender; Voces Latinas; NYC Care Outreach, Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement; Queens Zoo; New York Hall of Science; Queens Botanic Garden; Queens Public Library; Street Lab; St Ann’s Warehouse; US Census Bureau: Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs; NYC Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit; NYS Office of Mental Health’s Project Hope NYC; State Senator Jessica Ramos; New York State Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz; Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; Queens Borough President Donovan Richards; City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer; Governor Kathy Hochul; New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio; GetCoveredNYC Public Engagement Unit; Department of Labor; and NYC Administration For Children’s Services.

 

Watch this short video celebrating all the people, partners, and organizations that have supported and continue to make the food pantry at the Queens Museum a reality.

 

Pedro Rodriguez is the Executive Director of La Jornada and oversees a team of volunteers distributing food to over 10,000 families in Flushing, Queens. He reports that “80% of my requests in Flushing are coming from people in Corona impacted by COVID-19 who have lost their businesses and livelihoods.”

 

If you’re interested in supporting the La Jornada Food Pantry at the Queens Museum, please consider donating to La Jornada or volunteering. Those interested in volunteering can email qmcommunity@queensmuseum.org for initial volunteer registration. Please note that those interested in registering for the Food Pantry must live in the 11368 zip code and RSVP on the Plentiful App.

 

 

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En colaboración con La Jornada, el Museo de Queens alberga un programa de distribución de alimentos semanal que comenzó en junio de 2020, brindando mayor seguridad alimentaria a nuestros vecinos más inmediatos durante la pandemia de Covid-19.

 

Corona, Queens, estuvo en el epicentro de la primera ola de la pandemia Covid-19 que afectó a Nueva York en 2020, experimentando algunos de los números más altos de casos y muertes de Covid en la ciudad. Dado que las comunidades negras, marrones e inmigrantes se han visto afectadas de manera desproporcionada por Covid-19 en todo el país, las comunidades en su mayoría inmigrantes que viven en Corona continúan enfrentando pérdidas devastadoras e inseguridad alimentaria debido al desempleo y al acceso desigual a los recursos y la asistencia del gobierno.

 

Con el fin de ayudar a aliviar la demanda en las despensas de alimentos existentes y los esfuerzos de socorro en Corona, La Jornada Food Pantry en el Museo de Queens atiende a un promedio de 400 familias semanalmente los miércoles, distribuyendo alimentos frescos y no perecederos para una semana. Las operaciones cuentan con el apoyo de más de 120 voluntarios de la comunidad inmediata; las asociaciones actuales incluyen Commonpoint Queens y Elmhurst Corona Recovery CollaborativeFlushing Meadows Corona Park proporciona un apoyo significativo.

 

En 2020, la despensa de alimentos se administró en asociación con Together We Can Community Resource Center, y las asociaciones hasta la fecha han incluido Flushing Meadows Corona Park; Together We Can Community Resource Center Inc.; Elmhurst Community Partnership; NY Cares; Hispanic Federation; Commonpoint Queens; Elmhurst Corona Recovery Collaborative; Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield; Fidelis Care; Queens Community House; Hunger Free NYC; New York Health and Hospitals Elmhurst Hospital; Coalicion Mexicana; MetroPlus; Birth Justice Defender; Voces Latinas; NYC Care Outreach, Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement; Queens Zoo; New York Hall of Science; Queens Botanic Garden; Queens Public Library; Street Lab; St Ann’s Warehouse; US Census Bureau: Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs; NYC Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit; NYS Office of Mental Health’s Project Hope NYC; State Senator Jessica Ramos; New York State Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz; Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; Queens Borough President Donovan Richards; City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer; Governor Kathy Hochul; New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio; GetCoveredNYC Public Engagement Unit; Department of Labor; y NYC Administration For Children’s Services.

 

Haga clic aquí para ver un video corto que celebra a todas las personas, socios y organizaciones que han apoyado y continúan haciendo realidad la despensa de alimentos del Queens Museum.

 

Pedro Rodríguez es el Director Ejecutivo de La Jornada y supervisa un equipo de voluntarios que distribuyen alimentos a más de 10,000 familias en Flushing, Queens. Él informa que “el 80% de mis solicitudes en Flushing provienen de personas en Corona afectadas por COVID-19 que han perdido sus negocios y sus medios de vida”.

 

Si está interesado en apoyar a La Jornada Food Pantry en el Queens Museum, considere hacer una donación a La Jornada o ser voluntario. Aquellos interesados ​​en ser voluntarios pueden enviar un correo electrónico a qmcommunity@queensmuseum.org para registrarse como voluntario inicial. Tenga en cuenta que aquellos interesados ​​en registrarse para Food Pantry deben vivir en el código postal 11368 y confirmar su asistencia en la aplicación Plentiful.