Leetsdale food pantry serves more residents than ever

Leetsdale Mayor Sandra Ford has seen the need for the borough’s food pantry grow since taking over operations several years ago.

Run out of a downstairs room of the borough building with a couple of refrigerators and a recently installed freezer, volunteers prepare and deliver nutritionally balanced bags to at least 60 residents monthly.

Ford said a few volunteers previously ran the food pantry and used to serve a dozen residents.

The mayor took over operations in 2021.

Distribution is on the third Monday of the month.

Ford said nonperishables are packed the week before, with meats and dairy accepted by the food pantry on delivery day.

All food is delivered to participants instead of them coming to pick items up.

“A lot of the residents in the high-rise are on oxygen or are disabled,” Ford said. “It’s easier to just take it to their apartment, and sometimes we bring it right into their apartment and put it on their table. They are very happy with what they’re getting.”

Some volunteers have built relationships with food recipients over the years.

“Sometimes we’re the only people they have coming into their apartment,” Ford said. “They live alone and they are handicapped. We’re the only ones they see for a long time, and they tell us that, too. They want to talk.”

There is a core food pantry group of five volunteers including the mayor, her son and public works employee Bob Ford, council vice president Osman Awad, Cathy Opalka and former councilwoman Linda Vaccaro. Several others also assist on delivery day.

Vaccaro has been involved with the food pantry for the past couple of years.

“I’m a very social person and I like being around other people,” she said. “It just warms my heart to deliver (food). It’s wonderful for our neighborhood.”

Residents who need food pantry support must fill out an application and send it to the borough office.

The form is available online at leetsdaleboro.net.

People interested in volunteering can email the mayor at mayorsford@gmail.com.

Food bank support

Sandra and Bob Ford and Awad went through training and became certified in food safety through the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, which provides about 1,500 pounds of food per month to Leetsdale.

“The food bank’s mission is to leverage the power of community to find lasting solutions to hunger and its root causes,” said Brian Gulish, Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank vice president of marketing and communications. “We have more than 1,000 agencies, partners and programs across our 11-county service area. And whether it’s advocating, volunteering or donating, but supporting the work of the food bank and our entire network, we are ensuring that everyone in every community has the food they need to thrive.”

Feeding America, a Chicago-based nonprofit and network of more than 200 food banks nationwide, estimates there are 47 million people in the U.S. who are food insecure, including one in five children.

About 49 million people turned to food assistance including food banks, pantries and community organizations for extra help in 2022 alone, according to a Feeding America report.

Gulish, a 2001 Quaker Valley grad, is proud of the work being done in Leetsdale.

“Sometimes, there may be perceptions that more affluent communities aren’t impacted by hunger, but hunger is present every community,” he said.

“Personally, I grew up just down the road from Leetsdale in Fair Oaks and attended Quaker Valley. While I may not have realized it at the time, I now reflect on my childhood and can identify instances where some friends and their families may have been impacted in some way by food insecurity, perhaps even mine.”

The food pantry is inspected annually by the food bank, the Allegheny County Health Department and the state Department of Agriculture.

Rules and regulations

Borough council in August adopted new food pantry policies and procedures.

Sandra Ford said it formalizes how the pantry has been operating for years and doesn’t change day-to-day operations.

The policy states the mayor is responsible for obtaining necessary training and clearances with the food bank and any other appropriate service organizations.

The mayor is also responsible for planning and executing operations, routine communication with volunteers and arranging for additional food distribution in case of emergencies, according to borough documents.

At least two borough employees will assist the food pantry during their regular work hours at the mayor’s request. The borough will provide a storage room free of charge and an annual stipend to the food pantry.

The mayor said she gets $3,000 from the borough to help with operations, transportation and packing supplies. Borough funds are not used for food.

All food is either given to the borough or purchased through monetary donations.

Awad said it was important to put food pantry operations on paper to help the borough ensure its mission.

“When people need help, they should get help,” Awad said.

People can donate nonperishable goods at the borough office, 373 Beaver St.

The most requested item is canned soup.

Those who wish to make monetary donations can send checks to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, 1 North Linden St., Duquesne, PA 15110.

Write “Borough of Leetsdale Food Pantry” in the memo line.

September is also Hunger Action Month, which provides the food bank, as well as the nearly 200 other partners of Feeding America, extra spotlight to raise awareness about hunger in America and inspire action.

More information is available at feedingamerica.org.