Duncan Crow

Duncan was relatively new to New York when the pandemic hit, yet he’s managed to stay busy, volunteering with LSA since April 2020. Duncan supports the frontline volunteers by ensuring they are fully stocked with bags of food and other goods to hand out. He jokes that with how fast food is handed out, restocking ends up being intense, not unlike the marathon he ran last year! 

Marathons and volunteering aren’t the only things keeping Duncan busy.  In 2021, he looks forward to attending medical school, where his empathy and caring for others will serve him well. 

“A lack of compassion is poignant in modern America, and volunteering with LSA helps continue their legacy of empathy,” said Duncan.  “Not compassion to feel better about my actions, but rather a realization that we are all more interconnected than we realize and must share universal challenges. COVID-19 highlights the idea of our problems.”

Elianny Salcedo

Elianny has long been involved with LSA, first volunteering in the mentoring program over eight years ago.  When the global pandemic hit, Elianny knew that the East Harlem community needed support now more than ever and began volunteering in the food pantry in March.

Her longstanding commitment to LSA puts Elianny in a leadership role guiding the volunteers who come to the pantry and teaching them the systems in place.  And with making more than 600 pantry bags a week, those systems are important to ensuring that the community has their needs met (and, like Duncan, she gets in a great workout!).

Being a part of the community for so long, Elianny has seen first-hand the changes that the pandemic has had on East Harlem.  “We’ve seen an increase in the vitality of the pantry,” said Elianny.  “[The pandemic] has reinforced that it’s essential for people to have a trusted place for food and other essentials; even people who thought they would never rely on a pantry are coming to us now.  We’re providing essential relief.”

Bill Ofenloch

Bill is another volunteer with long time ties to the community, having lived in East Harlem for 45 years.  The COVID pandemic also called Bill back to volunteering, this time through the Benincasa organization.

Helping in the pantry, Bill has been blown away by the sheer volume of food that is distributed and the great number of people who receive it. “People are really grateful,” said Bill, “It is one of the major works of mercy to feed the hungry and I am glad to do it in a concrete way.”

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As the holidays approach, we want to thank our wonderful volunteers, donors, staff, and East Harlem families that make LSA’s work possible. When you become a part of LSA, you join more than just a community-based non-profit; you become a part of a family.

Reflection On My Experience

By: Jaylin Santos

During the summer of 2019, I was allowed to volunteer at a non-profit organization in East Harlem, New York City, called Little Sisters of the Assumption Family Health Services (LSA). I heard of this opportunity from my mother who has been a receptionist here for more than 10 years.

That summer really helped me grasp a deeper understanding of the poverty and health determinants that were very evident in the East Harlem community – a largely immigrant and minority community.

I was able to see before me first hand how my help could directly impact a community. LSA, which is mainly run by volunteers and of course some staff, covered a multitude of different issues that could occur in a family household. LSA provides families with legal advice, food, clothes, education services, prenatal care, and most importantly a sense of community where families are given hope. 

Over the summer I volunteered 40 hours every week for 8 weeks straight. Because the agency depends heavily on volunteer support, I was in high demand for the majority of my time here. Not that I minded, I loved it. It did however take a lot of hard work and dedication. I would go in with my mother every morning at 9 am.

On Mondays, I would get started stocking the pantry that would feed hundreds of families and work with a multitude of grateful people most of whom did not even speak English (good thing I’m bilingual!). On Tuesdays, I would visit The Sharing Place, a thrift store run by LSA that helps to provide low-cost clothing, housewares, and other items to the community. I’d work as the cashier and also help the clients on the floor when necessary. Some times when a client would come in without the money to buy what they needed, I would help them with stipends that could give them a fresh set of clothes. On Wednesdays, I worked with the summer camp and helped bilingual students learn how to read and write in English properly. On Thursdays, I would go to the nurses’ floor and help them organize the supplies that they would give out to less fortunate families. On Fridays, I would float and pick up whatever job needed to be done.

Needless to say, I was always exhausted but it was worth the feeling of doing good for a community that is less fortunate. Today, my sense of family at LSA continues and I work whenever able.

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During this multi-part series, we introduce a few of the volunteers who have continued to keep LSA running.  We thank all of our volunteers and supporters who have helped us in supporting the East Harlem community.

Fatimatujjohra Mim

Fatima first heard about volunteer opportunities at LSA from friends at CUNY Lehman College where she studies Dietetics, Food, and Nutrition.  Volunteering at LSA, Fatima assists with bagging food, ensuring products are flowing from production place to distribution place, helping the front line leader in handling bags to the customers, and making sure production places are clean. 

But this isn’t Fatima’s first experience working around food.  She previously volunteered at City Harvest and the Lehman Campus Food Bank before becoming a LSA volunteer. Volunteering at LSA not only gives her a sense of motivation and accomplishment in helping her community, but also will help her one day better serve her own clients as a doctor or registered dietitian. “I wanted to meet more people and learn more about food service and the community, and get to know about different races, what they eat, what kind of food they pick up when they go shopping,” said Fatima.  “It’s strange how helping others makes me feel motivated to do more for others, it motivates me to do more good things for the community, and it makes me appreciate my life more.”

Lisa Tadross

Originally from Vienna, Austria, but a New Yorker for over 15 years, Lisa and her family recently moved to the East Harlem neighborhood before the COVID crisis struck.  A flight attendant for American Airlines, Lisa used her time to help serve her new community. “I’ve been wanting to help the local community during these hard times,” said Lisa, “and I was fortunate to have the time to do so since my job/flying slowed down.”

As a Food Pantry volunteer, Lisa assists with the preparation and distribution of food packages to individuals and families.  And the community’s gratitude has not gone unnoticed. “The gratitude people have shown has been amazing,” said Lisa, “for example, some local mothers have been bringing the volunteers delicious home-cooked meals.”

Raymundo Gonzalez

Raymundo is a New Yorker, born in Mexico City with a long history with LSA.  A former, long-term East Harlem resident Raymundo and his family received services from LSA before becoming a volunteer and staff member.  Now in the food industry, Raymundo returned to his roots to support his fellow New Yorkers at LSA during the COVID crisis.  

“I strongly believe in giving back to those who have helped me get to where I am today,” said Raymundo. “During my time as a client, employee and now volunteer LSA has turned into a second home for my family and me.” With his many years of experience at LSA, Raymundo has truly touched every aspect of the agency.  From head custodian to working in advocacy, Raymundo has met a lot of extraordinary people. “[The people of LSA] are like angels, said Raymundo. “I didn’t know people like that could exist until I came to LSA.”

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We offer many thanks to all of our volunteers for their service year after year!

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Today, we take a look back at Prioska’s story published originally on the LSA blog in December 2015.

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Volunteering has been a life-long mission for Tom. In college, he was an active member of the Appalachian Project volunteering across the country and state. For his last two years of college, Tom and a group of volunteers worked on 103rd and 3rd, in the heart of East Harlem.

“I have a soft spot for East Harlem from my college experience,” said Tom. “After that, I went on to raise a family and have a career, so the amount of volunteer work I did for a good long stretch of time was kind of limited.”

Being out of the ‘volunteer-force’ for those years didn’t stop Tom from jumping right back in once the time was right. About 10 years ago, he started assisting families with tax returns around the city, and two years ago, upon his retirement, chose to commit a large share of his time giving back.

“I said, ‘I really need to do more’” said Tom. “[My wife and I] made the decision to spend our time giving back…and that’s really what this world needs today.”

And that’s just what he’s done. For the past two years, Tom has been an ever-present face in the LSA Food Pantry.

“It’s a family – the LSA family,” said Tom. “You see the same people on a regular basis…there’s a certain bond with the people you see each week, and there’s a certain continuity that I think the clients appreciate.”

It’s more than just the clients who are grateful to Tom. The whole LSA family is grateful for his dedication and commitment to the agency. Thank you, Tom!

Without our volunteers, LSA wouldn’t be able to do the good work that the community needs.  As Tom also notes, many of our Food Pantry volunteers also give time in other areas – such as the afterschool program, as well.  If you’re interested in becoming a volunteer, please contact Trish Gough at tgough@lsafhs.org.

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They have committed to helping East Harlem families with home improvement projects in partnership with LSA Family Health Service.

The first project was to complete a project started by a new client of ours who wanted to brighten up her apartment and make it more comfortable for her 15 year old son, who was recently diagnosed with cancer.

We thank the volunteers from Brick Church for dedicating their time to improving the quality of life for families in our community!

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High school students volunteer with our programs in various ways, earning community service credit and giving back to the NYC community in meaningful ways.

On Sept. 23, the LSA Parent Committee, a group of parents who volunteer to promote service opportunities at LSA, hosted a volunteer Open House for teens.  Teens from a number of schools attended to learn more.

In addition, we introduced the LSA Youth Board as a fun new way to get involved. The Youth Board, which was founded by a Spence volunteer and is just getting started this fall, offers an opportunity for high school students to support LSA through fundraising activities and unique volunteer efforts.

The Open House gave participants a taste of what it might be like to volunteer with the after school program.  Volunteers and children from the program made book marks together and enjoyed a tasty pizza dinner. Our thanks to the Parent Committee and to the volunteers who made it such a fun afternoon!

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Our thanks to school supply and backpack donors:

The Brooke Jackman Foundation
Church Pension Group
Disney
Emerson Reid/USI
Insperity
Morgan Stanley
St. Francis de Sales
St. Monica’s

Special thanks to Morgan Stanley!

Morgan Stanley held drives to donate school supplies,  snacks for our children’s programs, and diapers and wipes for families with babies and toddlers.  In addition, some representatives from the company joined us to help distribute diapers.  These supplies are a tremendous help for our families.

THANK YOU!!

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We’re so lucky to have wonderful volunteers who joined us this summer:  students, corporate groups, and others who chose to give their time in service to our community.  We thank the many volunteers who have made a difference, with special thanks to groups from JP Morgan and USI for their service!

All About Pandas

A group of volunteers from JP Morgan joined students in our summer program for an afternoon of activities all about giant pandas. Together, children and volunteers learned panda facts, made their own paper pandas and even found a name for the new class mascot–“Pamboo.”

#USIGivesBack

Employees from Emerson Reid/USI volunteered in our food pantry and thrift store in a company-wide service campaign. They helped with our weekly pantry distribution, assisting visitors to the pantry in selecting foods for their families. And they helped sort donations of clothing, preparing them for the Sharing Place thrift store, sales from which help support our other programs.

“I had a wonderful time helping in the food pantry!  I loved interacting with clients and even using a little bit of Spanish that I leanred in high school.  I am glad to have helped them smile and receive any resources they needed.”  —Danielle C.

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