The Rina Shkolnik Kosher Food Pantry at the S.H.O.P in Cedarhurst (Sustenance, Hope, Opportunities, Place) is urging residents to donate urgent pantry staples to help those affected by the SNAP benefit cut.
The S.H.O.P located in Maple Plaza is operated by the Marion & Aaron Gural JCC. They are currently working with the UJA Federation, Community Chest South Shore, Met Council, Island Harvest and Long Island Cares to keep food on the shelves and provide assistance.
“We haven’t seen so many new families in crisis since the days of the Covid pandemic nearly six years ago,” Stacey Feldman, executive director of the JCC wrote in an email.
Rivkah Halpern, program director and a social worker at the S.H.O.P said that the SNAP benefits cut has made it harder for local families to put food on the table.
“At The S.H.O.P Food Pantry, we’ve seen a growing number of people coming to us for help, many for the very first time,” Halpern said. “Families who once managed to get by are now forced to choose between paying bills and buying groceries.”
The increase in food insecurity — a lack of access to sufficient food, or food of adequate quality, to meet basic needs — only boosts the need for donations.
“As demand rises, we are working tirelessly to keep our shelves stocked so we can continue supporting the community,” she added. “The S.H.O.P is currently holding an emergency food drive to ensure we can continue providing kosher, nutritious food to families in our community.”
Current food pantry items needed include breakfast foods, rice, pasta/pasta sauce, canned fishes and beans.
County Executive Bruce Blakeman declared a state of emergency in response to the federal government shutdown, announcing that Island Harvest and Long Island Cares will receive additional emergency funding to address a rise in food insecurity.
Blakeman said the move is intended to ensure that families relying on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits are not left without support while federal funding is stalled.
“With the issues that are going on in Washington, D.C. right now, there are many people who are in jeopardy of not being able to feed themselves and their families,” Blakeman said. “So we are trying to help and supplement the things that a lot of our great not-for-profits are doing here on Long Island.”
The county will provide $50,000 per week to each of the two major regional food banks until SNAP benefits resume. Roughly 31,450 Nassau households rely on SNAP.
Island Harvest CEO Randi Shubin Dresner said the support will go directly toward getting food into homes quickly.
“Food is a right,” Dresner said. “We need to be able to know that we’re going to be able to have access to a good, healthy meal. And these funds are going to allow us to purchase that kind of food and get it out into the community here in Nassau County really, really quickly.”
Long Island Cares CEO Katherine M. Fritz said the timing is critical for families already struggling.
“This is an important time in our lives on Long Island to make sure that we’re focused on the people — who are struggling every day to make sure that their families have food on their table,” she said.
Information about local food pantries and soup kitchens is available on NassauCountyNY.gov.
