You may have noticed around the holidays each year, small retail stores “pop-up” in malls and in vacant storefronts around town.
Food banks and pantries have borrowed the concept and employed it to deliver emergency food to families in need.
MOMS has taken this concept a step further, turning the pop-up into a Mobile Farmer’s Market.
Anyone who needs food gets food.
Nolan collected Fresh Direct Bags to help us deliver more food to homes during the pandemic.
To shop at our pantry, you only need to show up and sign your name. To receive home deliveries, you have to fill out a Virtual Pantry form on our site. And if you know someone who needs food, just come and we will fill a bag for you.
Traditionally, we have been funded predominantly by donations from individuals, family foundations and corporate matches, with a small amount coming from government grants. Up until last year, many of the grants were for food with a small amount covering some basic operating costs.
Our strategy is to make sure we have enough funds for our basic operation, and then apply for grants to fund additional programs. The programs are designed to meet the needs of the communities we serve in unique and innovative ways. Our willingness to be creative and share what we learn with others has made us more attractive. Our goal is to continue to partner with foundations and organizations looking to make a real impact on hunger and in doing so, improve the quality of life of all we serve.
Traditionally, food hubs are connection points between suppliers and distributors of food. Small farms rely on food hubs to connect them with local buyers.
Refrigerated container at Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers in Ossining, our farm-to-family food hub.
MOMS borrowed this idea and built on it, employing a refrigerated container as a receiving site for farm-fresh produce during the growing season, and recovered perishable food all year long. Food is delivered to the hub, where it is weighed, sorted, categorized and stored temporarily until it can be loaded on our Pantry Truck for distribution.
Unlike a food pantry which functions as a community store, the hub is more of a wholesale distribution point, aggregating multiple deliveries for local distributors throughout the community.
At 509 North Main Street we have an operation center, which is the heart of all our programs. We have a commercial kitchen that produces meals for communities in need across the region.
509 North Main Street Port Chester, NY 10573