Volunteers are the soul of Long Island Cares

April 22 | Peter Crescenti

Our volunteers are the hands, heart, and soul of the food bank.

Volunteering is synonymous with Long Island Cares. Volunteers work at our warehouse, sorting and packing the millions of pounds of food we deliver to our network of Island-wide food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and other organizations.

They are the men, women, and high school and college students at our five pantries, doing everything from stocking shelves to assisting our guests find the foods they need.

They do office work at our headquarters in Hauppauge and drive delivery trucks to homebound seniors and veterans, the homeless and more.

Our farmer’s markets for seniors and veterans couldn’t happen without them. And nothing would grow in our community gardens were it not for them.

Oh, and let’s not forget the food drives they host.

The bottom line is that volunteers care deeply about our food-insecure communities and are determined to help them in any way they can.

Last year, 2,200 volunteers contributed more than 29,000 hours to eradicate food insecurity, and hundreds of them are also donors.

Meet Nina and Brian

They are an extraordinary couple. Nina—for 30 years an advertising salesperson for high-profile magazines such as Good Housekeeping, Bon Appetit, and TV Guide—spends Tuesdays at our Huntington Station pantry, where she enjoys chatting with Huntingtonians as she escorts them up and down the aisles in search of nutritious, delicious, and culturally relevant food.

Brian has a unique hobby: He heads a rock band that annually performs a fundraising concert for Long Island Cares. Says Nina, “Brian’s band is really good! Our house came with a horse barn that we converted to a music studio, and he and a bunch of pals get together weekly to practice, and it’s really paid off.”

Nina, a Long Island native, loves living here and cites that as the primary reason for volunteering.

“That’s why I feel so passionate about Long Island Cares. It’s a homegrown organization serving our local communities, and it has an amazing impact.  Every time I am at the warehouse I am SO impressed with the size and scope of Long Island Cares.”

Thanks, Nina and Brian. And thanks to all of you who have that same passion for the work we do. So many lives depend on it. You are our heroes.