Happy Pride, everyone!  As we enter June, we celebrate the 2nd Anniversary of the Love Wins Food Pantry.  We couldn’t have made it this far without our donors and volunteers.  Thank you for the love and care you have shown for your neighbors.  At this special occasion, we wanted to share with the community an update on our work and extend an invitation. 

The Love Wins operation has grown in 2022, and we are eager to share the good news!  We now help operate FIVE food pantry sites every month.  We have our main site which operates out of Viva La Heights – a new queer bar next to Friends Tavern on Roosevelt Avenue.  At this site, we distribute fresh produce and other food to more than 300 families every other week.  We also have a longstanding partnership with Colectivo Intercultural TRANSgrediendo (CITG), a trans Latina organization located on 83rd Street.  With CITG, we provide food and technical assistance for their own bi-weekly pantry.  At these two sites alone, we distribute about 12 tons of free food every month to our neighbors in Queens.  More recently, we formed a partnership with SAGE, an organization which supports LGBTQ elders, to help operate food pantries at three of their sites in Brooklyn, Harlem and The Bronx.  

As we have expanded, we have also overcome many obstacles.  As the price of food climbs, more and more people have visited our pantries seeking support – increasing costs and pressure on our work.  Food insecurity continues to be a tragic and pervasive problem in Queens.  And, new data from last year shows that LGBTQ adults face food insecurity at twice the rate of straight folks. 

Meanwhile, the city government is cutting back its support of food pantries.  This headline says it all: “Food Pantries Starved for Deliveries Following Sudden Supply Cuts in City Hall Program.”  To continue to serve our community, we forged deeper partnerships with The Migrant Kitchen and New York Common Pantry.  These two partners have both been lifesavers. 

So now, we extend to you three invitations!