‘Good Neighbors’ takes the lead 

By JoAnn R. Walter —

A local organization working out of the Memorial Park Baptist Church in Vestal, N.Y. is helping their neighbors who are dealing with food insecurity.

Good Neighbors NY, based out of 1013 Front St. in Vestal, a church, originally formed in the fall of 2021. The group’s mission is to ensure that no one goes hungry and build relationships with organizations and individuals to connect food and necessities to those in need.

Food insecurity, they note, leads to tough decisions. When families have limited funds, they’re faced with a difficult choice: whether to buy food for the week or pay bills.

And that is precisely where Good Neighbors NY takes the lead.

Volunteers collect food that would otherwise be tossed and deliver it straight to the community. By leveraging resources, Good Neighbors NY helps reduce hunger and food waste.

Good Neighbors NY is a spin-off from a sister organization, Good Neighbors FL, that started in Clearwater in 2020. A pandemic-inspired initiative, Heather and Tim Brooke’s organization has evolved into a working connection of over 125 businesses and organizations in Clearwater to collect surplus food and, in turn, distribute it to people who need it most.

Heather, a Broome County, N.Y. native, inspired her sister, Krista Callis, and a Broome County resident, to launch Good Neighbors NY. The volunteer-run organization in Vestal collects food that serves seniors, children, the disabled, food pantries, soup kitchens, as well as the unsheltered and those in transitional housing.

Callis explained that with some 25 regular volunteers, Good Neighbors NY partners with some 75 local stores and restaurants for food pickups. From Price Chopper, Weis Markets, Sam’s Club, Target, Chipotle, Panera Bread, Insomnia Cookies, Olive Garden, Bimbo Bakery, and more, Good Neighbors NY redistributes food to neighbors in need. 

In all, Callis remarked, “We rescue over 40,000 pounds of food each month.”

Just three of countless examples Callis shared are products that a grocery store has opted to no longer sell, products near the expiration date, or opened boxes at the top tab, but bags inside are still intact.  

Inside Memorial Park Baptist Church, there are two main rooms organized with stock for distribution, and an overflow room for stock that requires sorting. The church has allowed Good Neighbors NY to use the space since their parishioner base has decreased in recent years.

Good Neighbors NY delivers food to senior housing establishments or to multiple food pantries, numbering more than 25 churches in the area. Restaurant food is often packaged and frozen to be handed out as ready-to-serve meals.

A food giveaway is hosted monthly at Memorial Park Baptist Church. No registration is needed, and just a few questions are asked, such as zip code, how many in the family, and is anyone under 18 or over 55. 

At the food giveaways, visitors are given a random number on a card which places them in a queue. When their number is called, they are able to shop for what they need, instead of being given a bag filled with random items.

Items vary at each food giveaway, from canned to boxed goods, store brands and name brands, fresh produce as available, meats and dairy, personal care items, and pet food, to name a few. One gentleman who stopped by the food giveaway on Feb. 16 brought in farm-fresh eggs to share from his own chickens. 

According to the Office of the New York State Comptroller, food insecurity persists. The Comptroller’s website cites that households with children have experienced the highest rates of food insecurity over the last five years. To date, the office notes that one in nine families with children in New York sometimes or often do not have enough to eat. 

The Comptroller’s office also notes that SNAP, the largest federal nutrition program, plays an important role in helping eligible, low-income individuals and households supplement their grocery budgets to afford healthy foods.

Callis emphasizes, and since she sees the need first-hand, that, “The need is continuing to increase.” 

Good Neighbors NY serves the Vestal-Endicott-Binghamton area for food deliveries and at their monthly food giveaways. The group has welcomed individuals from Tioga County, New York, and northeast Pennsylvania as well.

The food giveaways, Callis noted, are, “Open to everybody.”

One of six community pantries in Broome County, Memorial Park Baptist Church features a “Blessing Box.” Food items are left for people to pick up outside the church, and an outside refrigerator houses various cold items.

The next food giveaway at Memorial Park Baptist Church is planned for March 30, from 2 to 3 p.m. For information or questions, call (607) 444-2448 or visit goodneighborsNY.org.