The nonprofit Housing Solutions of New York (HSNY) recently expanded its services in the Bronx with a new office in the South Bronx and a food pantry designed to eliminate long lines.
The nonprofit held a May 28 grand opening that included tours of the space at East 149th Street between Brook and St. Ann’s Avenues, speeches by Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson and Council Member Justin Sanchez and recognition for those who created what they hope will become a new model for food pantries.
While many Bronx food pantries regularly see blocks-long lines and people waiting outdoors for hours, Board Chairperson Marilyn Sola Tavarez said HSNY’s pantry is “intentionally designed to be different.”
It is open by appointment only, thus eliminating the need to wait. Clients meet with a registered dietitian to walk through the pantry and select items that suit their family size and medical and cultural needs. Similar to a supermarket, clients use shopping carts and computerized checkout, and they buy and budget using a point system assigned to each item.
During the grand opening, the pantry was stocked with grains, legumes, spices and seasonings, condiments like vinegar and hot sauce, frozen fish, fresh and canned fruits and vegetables, dairy products and more.
In addition to the pantry, the new space will host community events and weekly cooking classes in both English and Spanish, where clients can learn healthy recipes and substitutions while staying true to cultural traditions.
Guests sampled some of those concoctions at the grand opening, including wraps with chicken or tuna, couscous vegetable salad, chicken quesadillas and fruit-infused iced tea.
CEO Seth Muraskin told attendees that HSNY’s pantry served 390 people in the past year and distributed 11,322 preassembled bags of food. More than 170 people are on the waiting list to become regular clients, proving that the need remains strong, he said.
“It is absolutely an opportune moment that we are expanding our program and are able to serve as many people as we can,” Muraskin said.
He also said HSNY is working to address all the overlapping issues — health, food access, housing stability — that too many New Yorkers struggle with.
“Even though this is a beautiful facility, our goal is to make sure that everyone who works for HSNY is out of a job. Close this place down, close all our shelters down, because we have solved the problem.”
As of now, demand shows no sign of stopping, according to Sophie Martin, director of community health programs, who said the nonprofit was on track to serve record numbers for the second year in a row.
Martin created the no-line pantry model but said the organization’s impact goes much further into one-on-one nutrition and health education, cooking classes and more. “It’s not all just about food.”
Borough President Gibson praised the pantry’s ability to break down barriers to food access. “This is a safe space where we don’t ask questions, we meet them where they are.”
The borough president said she was frustrated by the poor health outcomes and disparities in the Bronx.
“That’s not our story. Our story is how we overcome that — how we turn those statistics into success stories,” she said. “I refuse to let the Bronx be left behind.”
Council Member Sanchez presented a City Council citation to commemorate the new pantry and marked the irony of the South Bronx having one of the country’s largest food distribution centers at the Hunts Point Market, yet many residents go hungry. “That’s just unfair.”
Sanchez said he hoped the citation and grand opening excitement would help motivate HSNY to continue working despite many challenges. For one, this no-line pantry model is much more time- and resource-intensive than a standard pantry, board members told the Bronx Times. “This is not easy work, and this is just the beginning.”
A lifeline
Marissa Mass and her husband, Bakary, are a young couple who fell on hard times and have been visiting HSNY for almost four years. They attended the grand opening and said they were thrilled with the new pantry and office space.
Bakary told the Bronx Times that he had been a manager at Whole Foods for more than a decade when he had to stop working due to medical reasons. Marissa is a full-time student at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, working towards a bachelor’s and master’s degree but unable to work full-time due to her studies.
Ironically, even though Bakary worked at a high-end supermarket, he and Marissa struggled with access to food and other essentials. He said he could never afford to shop at his own workplace, even with the employee discount. When he became unemployed, he and Marissa had to live in a shelter and needed help getting back on track.
Marissa said she’s visited many food pantries and even has a pantry locator app on her phone. But “[HSNY] is the only one I’ve wanted to faithfully come back to,” she said, even though the new location is a bit further from home.
Marissa said the organization supplies them with not just food but also a monthly gift card for household necessities and a lot of support as they navigate challenging times.
“If we didn’t have this, we probably wouldn’t make it,” Bakary said.
Marissa said it was initially hard for her to seek help and “depend on others.” But now that HSNY has become a critical source of support, she said others in her position should reach out if they’re in a tough spot.
“Never be afraid to say, ‘I need some help,’” Marissa said.
Bakary agreed that HSNY has brought them “growth and connections” that they wouldn’t have otherwise experienced.
“Anyone can find themselves in any type of situation,” he said. “Everyone deserves a second chance.”
Reach Emily Swanson at eswanson@schnepsmedia.com or (646) 717-0015. For more coverage, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!
