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Feeding Syracuse's Hidden Hunger

• Skip Clark

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Speaker 1:

Good morning and welcome to the Inner Harbor cast, connecting our community to the people who matter. Each episode we shine a light on the voices making a difference in Syracuse and beyond. It's time to dive right into it. This morning I have Kate Artesa, who is the executive director of the Interreligious Food Consortium of CNY Central New York. Kate, good morning Welcome.

Speaker 2:

Good morning, skip. Thank you, it's good to see you.

Speaker 1:

I don't think we've ever met before, so this will be very educational to me as well, and hopefully to our viewers and our listeners. But, kate, can you start by telling us what is the Interreligious Food Consortium, the IFC, and how did it come to be?

Speaker 2:

Well, it's a grassroots organization, Been around since 1982. I wasn't there in 1982. I've been there about five years, took it over from a woman that was there for about 18 years and it's kind of sort of a best kept secret at times because we serve a lot of the pantries that are small, under-resourced, not served by the food bank. So we aren't part of the food bank at all. We don't have an affiliation there other than you know I know what they do, they know what we do. They serve 11 counties and all kinds of places and we try to get into the smaller areas of people that don't have access.

Speaker 1:

So you predate the food bank, cny? Yes, and that's a powerful detail right there. That means a lot. How did those early days with what six churches evolve into the broader mission that we see today?

Speaker 2:

Well, I'm sure it has to do with the fact that things have changed. People are really in need. We have not a great reputation of being a very impoverished area in the country, and so I think things had popped up. People realized, through the churches and wanting to help their community, that they would pop up and create food pantries. So then they needed the food for the food pantry. So it kind of evolved into this.

Speaker 1:

So, for those unfamiliar, how does IFC's role differ from, like the larger organization, the food bank?

Speaker 2:

Well, we do some of the same things, but on a smaller scale. What we do is we collect food donations. You know people will call and say they'll do a food drive for us. We have grants that we have applied for and gotten and we have a lot of very faithful supporters over the years. We send out newsletters and then through those newsletters people know more about us. We have one big, big fundraiser a year and that's coming up October 3rd it's a Friday. We've been doing it for over 20 years. The Syracuse University Visual and Performing Arts Department makes the bowls, along with Clayscapes, which is another organization that does a lot for the community, and they make maybe 1,500, 1,600 bowls and then we display them and people come and then I contact about 16 restaurants in our area and they provide us with a big pot of soup. So after you buy a bowl you get a soup for free.

Speaker 1:

I mean for the purchase of the bowl, and I want to talk more about that in just a little bit. But I also want to dig into the organization itself. I know these events are so very important. I think it's your big event the only event, the only big fundraiser? Yes, but you know you serve some of the smallest and some of the most under-resourced pantries in Syracuse. What kind of impact does that kind of being hyper-local support have on these communities?

Speaker 2:

Well, we're hoping. I mean we do hear from our pantries. They come and get the food and a lot of times they're hugging us by the time that we pack up the three or 400 pounds that we give them. Every month we have over 20, 30 some pantries and so we give them at least three or four. The other day I gave someone around 700 pounds because I happened to have a lot of food available. So it kind of ebbs and flows a little bit and so by the end we're hugging these people because they're saying how much it means to them. They're seeing a lot longer lines in there at their pantries, people calling with desperate needs, with emergencies, with you know. So we're hoping that it does make an impact.

Speaker 1:

I can only imagine that hug must mean so much, yeah, it's great, I mean I get the chicken noodles just thinking about what you just said. Can you describe what a day in the life looks like for your team, for the IFC team?

Speaker 2:

Okay, well, we have a small team. I am part-time there, my husband also volunteers there, along with a few other women, and we just we get in food, we pack it, we look for places that might want to donate food. People bring us, like you know, sometimes we'll get the food from College Town Bagels, panera or whatever and we pass that out. I just got a new freezer. We're partners with the interreligious, interfaith works excuse me, interfaith works and they're up the street from us. We partner with them and a lot of the pantries that we serve are part of their organization. So what we do is try to collaborate. They'll have some food drives for us. We'll get the word out through them and then we'll just get food coming in. We have, you know, an area that we had, northern Comfort. I don't know if you've heard of that organization Operation.

Speaker 1:

Northern Comfort.

Speaker 2:

Yes, yes very well, we reached out to them a few years ago because we were working out of these, you know, metal kind of rickety.

Speaker 1:

Like cabinets or shelves.

Speaker 2:

Shelf, excuse me, shelves like cabinets or shelves excuse me, shelves, and so we had them come over and they measured within a few days, came back with these amazing, beautiful, heavy duty wooden you know they do amazing work, amazing, and they give back so much, so much, just like you do.

Speaker 2:

We have everything sorted so that we can almost go through almost like a grocery store, pick out things for people, package it. Folks that come in to help, to volunteer, they'll package it up for us. We'll have it ready. Then the folks will come in Very nice.

Speaker 1:

Very nice. Let's talk a little bit about your crisis response work. How did the IFC become the go-to emergency food resource for Onondaga County's contact tracing counselors? How did all that come about?

Speaker 2:

Well, that was kind of an interesting. It was COVID.

Speaker 2:

That was during COVID and we were finding that we were getting calls. We were finding that people were in such need because they were quarantined at that time for 10 days. So we're like, okay, how do you know? We can pack people up, but how can they come and get it? What can they do? So we decided to work with the county and because we were getting so many calls and they said, if you would be willing to put it together and deliver it, we'll work with you. So we were getting all these calls, then we'd pick it up, we delivered it. It was probably a year that we did it. When, finally, covid lessened, people were maybe quarantined for four days so they were more able to get their food or have a neighbor get their food. But at the beginning, when it was so intense, we were out there delivering.

Speaker 1:

Sure, which we don't do anymore? No, you don't, but at that time you had to do it and they stepped up and everybody worked together at that. You know also, I understand, you're providing a same day, seven days a week food delivery which is incredible, by the way which is incredible. What does it take, with the logistics of all that and emotionally, to sustain that level of service?

Speaker 2:

Okay, I'm not sure that's correct. No, okay, we don't do any more delivering?

Speaker 1:

That's a question I just happened to see somewhere. Oh, you don't. You just mentioned that we don't do any more delivering.

Speaker 2:

We're just working there through the week, you know a weekday type of thing but I do have my phone connected to my phone, my office phone connected to my phone so I can get calls all the time. But I try to refer if I can to any emergency places that will serve someone, or, and or give them lists of pantries. I got you. Yeah, I was just. I was looking at some of the notes and I was writing questions.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, ok, I got you. You know you rely entirely on donations. Correct, right. One hundred you. You know you rely entirely on donations, right 100% donations.

Speaker 2:

We're 401, 501c3.

Speaker 1:

501c3. And how has that shaped the way that you connect with the community and tell your story about that?

Speaker 2:

Well, I think I mean it was predated me, but it's always been a 501c3 and it's always been kind of a community like how can we help? I mean churches will call us and say you know, how can we help? I mean churches will call us and say you know, how can we help you? And we'll say, well, have a food drive. I give them a list of food. They can put a poster up and say you know, if your folks are going to the grocery store, pick up a few of these items that are listed. Those are the ones we give out the most. Schools will do it.

Speaker 1:

Agencies OCRA has done it before, ocwa has done it also um a few other organizations, will you know reach out and and say I'll do a food pantry. Yeah, food drive for you, that's huge and if somebody wanted to make a donation the website they can go online and click the link and donate and it's all safe and secure and tax deductible because you're a 501c3. Correct?

Speaker 2:

We have a PayPal on our website, easy, easy. And then you know I have my address, we can put our address up there you can write a little, you know, send a little card with a check in it.

Speaker 1:

Do you know?

Speaker 2:

the website right off the top of your head wwwifccnyorg good because I was hoping it wasn't all those words, because I wouldn't be able to spell it correctly, but it's ifc, ifccny, I love thatorg, I love that.

Speaker 1:

Uh, you know. Now I want to talk about the empty bowls. Okay, this is cool. We touched on it just a few minutes ago. Tell me a little bit more about that. What makes this event so special and how does it bring the arts and activism together? I know you talked about your partners a little bit.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, we empty bowls started years ago and I think it's a nationwide project. So there's other places that do empty bowls and it's it's out of the concept of you know, no one should have an empty bowl. We shouldn't have to be hoping for a meal. Please, let's have a meal. People should be served, should have food. So it started by a couple that thought that this would be a good thing, and why don't we develop it into a community? People participate, they make these beautiful bowls and then when you take the bowl home, you remember that no one should have an empty bowl. There's kind of a symbolism there. I give out little cards that thank them on our behalf and you know. So it's like a gift.

Speaker 2:

That's a gift you know you're getting a gift, someone else is getting a gift, and then the soup is just really added a bonus.

Speaker 1:

And it's up to the restaurant that gets involved to decide what kind of soup. Yep.

Speaker 2:

So they can decide. I don't have anything to do with mushroom, we could do a chicken. I love chicken. We have an amazing variety. Everyone's comments on that, so it's about. It's about 16 different restaurants.

Speaker 1:

And you said, your partners are like a clay, scapes, pottery and Syracuse university. They help sustain the mission and spread awareness. And how do they do that?

Speaker 2:

Well University. They help sustain the mission and spread awareness. And how do they do that? Well, Clayscapes makes the bowls, but also provides clay. Okay. So if anybody wants to make a bowl, or is a potter out there and wants to make a bowl, we're welcome to do that and Clayscapes will give them the clay. They give the clay to the students at SU and the faculty.

Speaker 1:

We have a couple of very well-renowned potters that also provide bowls to us and so it's been going, you know, for many years you know, um, if listeners want to get involved, can they help? And what, what? Anybody that's watching this, somebody that listens to this on the air one of our four radio stations how can they, um, how can they get involved?

Speaker 2:

well, first of all come. That's probably the best way to get involved, and that's in October. That's in October. It's the first Friday, October 3rd, and it's at the Nancy Cantor Warehouse, which is on. Fayette Street in Armory Square. There's plenty of parking in the back of the building and then around the event and we'll have signs up and everything but coming and participating, seeing what we do. Really, if there's a potter or people that would like to make bowls, they can do that, they can volunteer.

Speaker 2:

Come in and do it, they can volunteer and make a bowl and donate the bowl to us beforehand, but it's mostly SU, the students make the bowls, but then they also volunteer, as does ClayScape. So we have plenty of volunteers, fortunately. So that's not one of the things that we could use, but you know, coming to the event is really the best.

Speaker 1:

What about listeners or viewers? Maybe organizing a food drive or some sort of fundraising effort?

Speaker 2:

I would love that. That's been something that's you know some of it has. Because of the schools and the schools being busy, they don't always have the time to do that. But I like to encourage schools to do it because that's a good thing for a student to learn what's going on. But if someone wants to, then it's fairly easy. I would send them the information that they can make up a poster and it tells all the different things that we tend to like, because it's all non-perishable foods that we get and it tells all the different things that we tend to like, because it's all non-perishable foods that we get, although lately I've been getting a little bit of frozen, because I did get a new freezer.

Speaker 2:

But we hand out mostly non-perishable things, and so if they can gather a group together, maybe it's a church group, maybe it's a school group or it's a neighborhood. Cedric Farms Neighborhood Association has donated food to us too.

Speaker 1:

That's great. We're talking with Kate Artessa. She's the executive director of the Interreligious Food Consortium of CNY, the IFC. That's how you see it, and if you go to ifccnyorg you can get a lot of that great information as we talk about it here this morning as well. What are your concerns, biggest concerns and hopes for the? You know, for the future here, let's say in the next year?

Speaker 2:

Well, one of my hopes that I say to people, which I don't it's not real realistic, but it's. I would like to become extinct, because if I become extinct then that means everybody has food.

Speaker 1:

You've taken care of the problem Right.

Speaker 2:

So that would. That's my main goal. But in working toward that, in the meantime we're just trying to gather as much food as we can donations so that we can buy food. Yesterday we went to Costco, my husband and I, and bought Ensure, because a lot of the people that we're serving are in high-rise, low-income apartments and they're elderly, either can't get out or they're just difficult to serve. So we get them the insurer so that they will at least maybe have one meal. And our pantries go crazy. That's gold to our pantries because they can hand it out and know that someone's getting you know a good, some good nutrition. But it's like $40 a case and you don't get many you know exactly.

Speaker 2:

So we went and got and they limit you so we have to go back a few times to get more cases.

Speaker 1:

You know you're talking about this being $40 a case and when we came in and before we went out with the lights and the camera here, you showed me a graphic. Let me see that for a second here. I don't know if they can see it here on the camera or not, but it says the most expensive vehicle to operate in 2025. It's a shopping cart, it's a grocery cart. Yeah, true, and it continues to grow up. That is, that's very effective right there.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, that's. That's. You know what it's all about you, kate, and your IFC team. What keeps you inspired and grounded when the needs get overwhelming.

Speaker 2:

I think it's the people that we serve. I mean I, you know, sometimes it gets to be like, oh my gosh, are we really making a difference? Oh, we have all these things. I mean it's heavy stuff that we're doing, heavy things that we're carrying. Most of the people that are working with me are my age and so you know we're doing it because we really believe in it, and just the people that come and get the food are so grateful. And we also are starting to serve some schools. Schools are setting up little pantries in their you know areas, some of the social workers and saying you know, I'm going to feed the kids on the weekends when they don't have food, and they'll gather some food together, get backpacks. And because they have to put it in backpacks, because the kids get bullied if they're taking food.

Speaker 1:

So, you know, it's some of those things that we're trying to work with what you're saying kind of tells me one thing that, as much as you like to see this go away and never, never be an issue, it's always going to be an issue, for a little while at least, for some time to come. And now we're into the schools making sure these kids get fed as well. Right, exactly, if you could communicate one thing to the public or those watching or listening to this about food insecurity in Syracuse and Central New York, what would that be?

Speaker 2:

Well, you know, it's hard because we see it like daily I get calls or I'm seeing the folks from the pantries come and hearing the stories, from the pantries come and hearing the stories, and I was talking to somebody yesterday that was working with someone that was homeless, put up in one of the hotels in Syracuse, then released from the hotel, put into an apartment, but then there were no services anymore for her, so and she was pregnant and you know, just, the stories just go on and on and it's just hard to communicate how, just a little bit of things, if someone just went and got a bag of food or whatever, how much that impact will be, wow, wow any final thoughts?

Speaker 1:

I know you like my questions I love your questions.

Speaker 2:

It's like I was doing very thorough.

Speaker 1:

producer steve was like yeah, you did your homework right. I said I did my homework but, like I said in the beginning, this is educational to me as well, because this is one of those organizations where we don't hear a lot about and we need to hear about it a lot more. So it's our effort of getting it out there and hopefully those watching this and those listening will definitely look into it a little bit further. But any final thoughts or stories you'd like to share about the people you've met or lives that you've seen changed through the IFC's work, yeah, Boy there's a lot of stories.

Speaker 1:

Is there one that sticks out in your?

Speaker 2:

mind. There's too many, there's so many, so many. You know people, just a lot of emergency situations that I wish I could deal with more. I try to at least give someone another number to call or someplace else to get them hooked up with someone, because you know a lot of times the folks that are in these situations, they're on different food stamps, they're on this, you know this program and they have all these calls and they have all these things to you know do and they have all these calls and they have all these things to do. So I like to try to have people avoid doing some of that and help them as quickly as I can with some resources. So I've been trying to really gain knowledge of what's out there for people.

Speaker 1:

I know we're running short on time here, but quickly, with everything that's going on, with all these cuts and all that, is that affecting what you do? Yes, I know prices are going up on groceries, but can we talk about that a little bit?

Speaker 2:

Well, prices are going up and their food stamps, et cetera, are going down.

Speaker 1:

So that just makes it faster. Would that be like the SNAP benefits?

Speaker 2:

SNAP, food stamps, all the different programs are being cut or reduced and so that just causes the panic for people. You know the social security issues that you know the different, the Medicaid, medicare, that all impacts the folks that we deal with because you know they're just in this maze of trying to figure out how to, you know, make ends meet. And then you know landlords and you know people have to pay their rents and get evicted. I mean, I just hear a lot of stories so you know, but food is the basic and a lot of them have children and it's just really important.

Speaker 1:

So that would be all the more reason, if you're listening or watching this, to go to the website ifccnyorg and donate Correct, I mean just, we all see what's going on around us in the world nowadays, but we need to help those in need.

Speaker 2:

Right, and a lot of that's being taken away.

Speaker 1:

Yes, and if people want to call and want to do a food drive, I can provide posters and kind of ideas as to how to get one going real quick before we say goodbye, empty bowls, october 3rd. I'll read it off, right here, at the Nancy Cantor Warehouse, which is 350 West Fayette Street Hundreds of bowls and it sounds like it's just a lot of fun. Bread provided by Postabilities too.

Speaker 2:

Oh, I can't forget that. Yes, that's a biggie. Wow, you talk about Postabilities. That was totally cut back on my bread, and they do soup too. Bread and soup.

Speaker 1:

Nice and jump online. I'm sure you can get all that information. Ifcnyorg, we've been chatting with Kate Artesa, the executive director of the Interreligious Food Consortium of CNY.

Speaker 1:

I want to say first of all, kate, thank you so much for spending a few minutes this morning to come in and educate me, and hopefully our viewers and listeners, about what the Interreligious Food Consortium is all about. I want to say thanks for listening to the Inner Harbor cast. This is where I say community meets conversation and if you enjoyed today's episode, be sure to subscribe, share, stay connected. Ifccnyorg is their website. Until next time, my name is Skip Clark. Thank you so much for watching. Thank you to Kate. Take care and let's keep lifting Syracuse.

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