I am not even sure where to begin this year. The exceptional generosity of our community and local organizations went above and beyond in this year of COVID-19.
Starting back in the Spring, so many residents went out of their way to make sure that the pantry was supported. We received donations of both food and money which allowed us to stay open during the pandemic.
And then the holidays came ....
We were able to distribute more than 130 baskets of turkey or chicken and all the trimmings to families in Greenwood Lake for the holidays, enabling them to have traditional and delicious meals.
We also (with the help of our Angel Tree angels), gave out toys to the children of 65 families. Such a joy to be able to help the children especially.
We have so many generous benefactors; I hope I don’t miss any. A huge thanks to:
The Greenwood Lake Chamber of Commerce which donated many turkeys; Shoprite of Warwick which provided the balance of free turkeys;
Laurene Sandstrom and Michael Flower brought us canisters of mashed potatoes;
The Cornell Cooperative provided sweet potatoes and squash;
Victor Ludmerer from Masker’s Orchards sent apple cider and apples;
Nasim from the Country Store sent more sweet potatoes and bread;
And we can’t forget the Greenwood Lake Girl Scouts who held a food drive to provide us with even more.
Then there are the wonderful residents of Greenwood Lake who stopped by and dropped off turkeys, hams, food, toiletries and money.
Some of you came every Saturday and some came with carloads of food.
We got cartons of toilet paper, Panettone cakes and pasta.
Whatever we needed.
We have a terrific community here and are incredibly grateful for all their support.
Santapalooza and the Poker players of the Elks club did more than their share.
Thank you for all your food drives and donations.
And of course, all the volunteers at the pantry; we couldn’t do any of this without their dedication and hard work.
John and Mary Cox, “Santa Bob” and Sandy Holz did a fabulous job of coordinating the Angel Tree in the Post Office. They spend many hours setting up the tree, organizing and gathering the gifts and distributing them to our local families.
And of course, none of that would be possible without the generous people of Greenwood Lake who reach out to those in need and purchase all the wonderful gifts for the Angel Tree.
We are truly blessed here in Greenwood Lake. Thanks to everyone who reached out to help us; apologies to anyone that we may have missed!
Pat Nolan on behalf of The Greenwood Lake Food Pantry