Dutchess Outreach Fights Poughkeepsie Hunger
When it comes to hunger in Poughkeepsie, the Dutchess County Outreach is taking matters into their own hands. The non-profit organization is responsible for providing multiple emergency services to residents of the Hudson Valley. Their latest project? Supplying fresh produce to anyone in need…and they do mean anyone.
With a green house of their own under construction, development associate Sarah Salem explained just what their longest running program is all about and what to expect in the future. With a program where they supply boxed food to those in need, the Outreach also just acquired a produce refrigerator. Local vendors and farms send over extra produce or produce that is about to expire, and they display it in an open fridge so people can pick what they want. This program is typically empowering for visitors because it gives them the freedom to choose the food they want, as opposed to food stamps.
“Most of our visitors are unique…we typically don’t see people coming time after time,” says Salem. “They’re really coming because it’s an emergency. Their car breaks down, their kid gets sick and they have medical expenses and they can’t buy food…they need us just to get themselves by. We pack the bags with that in mind.”
Visitors are allotted a three day supply of food every thirty days. The bags are packed with protein, fat, bread, fresh produce if it is available, and some kind of dairy product.
Hot meals are also available for lunch, dinner and after school with their “Lunch Box” meals. The “Lunch Box” program is open daily and serves an average of 500 meals a day, with an amazing 95,000 served in 2017. On February 20th, the cafeteria was bustling with smells and sights of a variety of casseroles, white rice, fresh fruit, and a crisp salad. With few chairs open at the tables, Poughkeepsie residents enjoyed hot meals and full bellies, many people sitting together, deep in conversation. Joining in on the gathering was not awkward, but welcoming. In a situation that could be presumably awkward, residents and volunteers alike offered smiles, food and a view into what the “Lunch Box” accomplishes every single day: curbing Poughkeepsie hunger and creating community. “It’s a good environment, people love it,” said Salem of the afternoon lunch rush.
After lunch, Salem showcased the Dutchess Outreach’s own 15,000 square foot farm and greenhouse. Here, they are creating a compost system and cultivating soil in an urban center, where the ground is typically contaminated. “It’s a whole other level of what we’re doing, so it’s exciting.” Aside from growing food for their own programs, Dutchess Outreach allows Poughkeepsie residents and companies to purchase plots of land in which they can do farming of their own to grow fresh produce.
After exploring their multiple emergency food programs including the “Lunch Box” Salem also explained their mobile farmers market in which produce is sold at a lower cost. As someone who grew up in the Hudson Valley, it was clear to see where Salem’s passions lie; her community. “We have a staff of twelve. We’re lucky because most of our staff is passionate and stretch ourselves thin.”
In her four years with Dutchess Outreach, Salem has seen a difference in hunger efforts, and is striving to see it do even better. “There was a bad time in the city of Poughkeepsie but I was never exposed to it…I have found a place and I want to see it do better, so I am going at it that way.”
