Community fridge bridges gap between Upper East Side neighbors
NEW YORK - A free grocery store has opened outside an Upper East Side NYCHA development. The community around the complex contributed to Grassroots Grocery's project to address food insecurity.
The stock piled high outside Holmes Towers at East 92nd Street and 1st Avenue Thursday, as a team of volunteers carried caseloads of food to fill the new pair of free fridges. A third of NYCHA residents struggles to feed their family.
"I'm retired now," said Vicki Diaz, who lives in the towers with her husband. "I don't make the money that I used to make, and this helps me a lot."
Diaz was among the first to grab a bag of groceries.
"I just asked for milk and he gave me everything else!" Diaz exclaimed.
Grassroots Grocery co-founder and CEO Dan Zauderer created a committed community volunteer force by tapping into nearby restaurants and religious organizations.
"Central Synagogue has such a thriving congregation that's rooted in social justice and in volunteerism," Zauderer said. "I thought, who better to reach out to that than a congregation that's already so committed to this?"
Some donors provide more than others, like the truckload of fruit delivered by one of the country's largest markets, Hunt's Point in the Bronx.
"They sell $3.2 billion worth of produce a year," said Zauderer, "and yet a lot of that food doesn't make it into communities."
"They just thought that it was maybe just neighborhood bodegas, but not from the outside," Holmes Towers resident association president Sandra Perez said about her surprised neighbors. "These people are from far away."
Artist Lizvette Figueroa painted a network of tree neighbors on the installation to illustrate the central idea of the partnership.
"They share the nutrients," Figueroa said about trees, "so I thought of it like a community, like if we share what we learn to other people and give them a positive message, maybe that will spread."
Every Saturday, Grassroots Grocery volunteers and donors come together in a coordinated effort to ensure each fridge across the city stays stocked. To learn more, click here.
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