How Long Island food rescue volunteers are turning leftovers into lifesavers
What we know
Volunteers with Food Rescue US regularly stop by The Culinary Studio in Huntington to pick up freshly prepared meals. These meals are then delivered directly to shelters or food pantries in need.
"Whatever we make here is for them too," said Mary Spoto, owner of The Culinary Studio of Huntington.
The nonprofit works with multiple food donors, including five Panera locations on Long Island, Wegman's, and various local farms.
"We work with five Paneras on Long Island, we work with Wegman's, we work with local farms," said June Ingraham, Western Suffolk Co-Site Director for Food Rescue US.
How it works
Once a food donation is ready, a post goes out on the Food Rescue US app. Volunteers then claim the "rescue" and quickly transport it.
"Within thirty minutes we're dropping that food off to an agency," said Liz Maloney, Western Nassau Site Coordinator.
Volunteers follow a set weekly schedule with donors.
"We have a set weekly schedule with our donors to pick up on certain days and if you're available to do the rescue—you click 'I'll do it' and that means you have claimed the rescue," Maloney explained.
By the numbers
According to Feeding America:
About 250,000 people on Long Island suffer from food insecurity.
79,000 of those are children.
Nationwide, 30–40% of food is wasted and ends up in landfills.
The other side
While major donations come from food banks, smaller deliveries from Food Rescue US help round out offerings at local pantries.
"We could do everything we can because there are so many people who need food," said Nancy Seiden, VP of The Community Food Council.
The Community Food Council feeds approximately 300 families each week and is always in need of more food donors.
"It's very rewarding and when you see the look on somebody's face and you give them food they didn't know they'd have—it's really heartwarming," said Anne Sacks-Berg, Western Suffolk Co-Site Director of Food Rescue US.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Buzz Feed
23-07-2025
- Buzz Feed
I'm Not Gonna Lie, These 20 Absolutely Mind-Blowing Pictures Just Completely And Totally Shattered My Dumb Little Brain
This is what the border between Mexico and the United States looks like at the ocean between Tijuana and San Diego: Here's another unique border. This is the border between Canada and France on Saint Pierre and Miquelon near Newfoundland: While campaigning for president in 1912, Theodore Roosevelt was shot in the chest but survived because the bullet was slowed by a steel glasses case and a folded speech in his jacket pocket. This is the shirt he was wearing that day: He famously went on to deliver the speech anyway, clocking in at over one hour. In Finland the largest size of mayonaise is called "AMERICAN SIZE:" No comment. This is one of only two remaining pirate Jolly Roger flags in existence: It was captured in 1790. According to the BBC, the flag's red color "signified the pirates intended to spare no life if a battle broke out during a ship's capture." Here's what some dinosaur footprints look like: Neat! Way, way back when it was originally created, Lysol advertised one of its uses as being for 'feminine hygiene:" Obviously, this is incredibly dangerous. This is Paul Karason, whose skin turned permanently blue after years of consuming colloidal silver: He claimed it cured many of his health problems, including arthritis and acid reflux. Here he is next to a non-blue person: According to astronomers, this is the average color of the universe: The color is called "cosmic latte." To figure this out, astronomers averaged the colors of over 200,000 galaxies together. Folks, would you drink the cosmic latte? Some old lawnmowers had built in cigarette lighters: We used to be a proper country. Yellow watermelons are a thing that exists: They apparently have more of a "honey" taste. I've seen them at Wegman's... but have not tried. Some menus include the estimated cooking time for each dish along with the price: This is a loaf of sourdough bread that was miraculously preserved after the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 CE: It was inside an oven at the time of the eruption. Folks, are you eating the volcano bread? Over time, gold crayons can turn green on the outside but still be gold on the inside: Sanddollars, my friend... sanddollars can be very tiny: This is what the start of a river looks like: Otherwise known as a spring. This is the start of the Metolius River in Oregon. Before treating cuts on eyeballs, a yellow dye is applied to better locate any tears: It does look pretty cool, though. This is the amount of contact a train wheel typically makes with the track: A bit scary. This is what a cross-section of a Boeing 747 looks like: Not much between you and the great wide-open sky. And, finally, some elevators in Japan have tiny little toilets in the corner: For... you know... emergencies.
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Yahoo
Milo's Tea Company announces production pause to provide clean drinking water to Texas disaster relief
BESSEMER, Ala. (WHNT) — A company headquartered in Central Alabama paused production at one of its plants last week to transition to disaster relief aid. Last week, the CEO of Milo's Tea Company took to LinkedIn to announce the decision. Tricia Wallwork, Milo's CEO and granddaughter of the company's founders, said the reason for this pause was because 'our neighbors in Texas need clean drinking water more than anything else right now, and disaster relief is something we feel strongly about.' The halt in production is at the Tulsa, Oklahoma, plant, Wallwork said. In the post, Wallwork said, 'five truckloads – 124 pallets and more than 119,000 bottles – of Milo's bottled water [would be arriving] at the San Antonio Food Bank to support flood relief efforts in a community that's experienced unimaginable loss. As a mother, wife and human, my prayers go out to all those impacted by the horrific flooding in Texas.' Wallwork also said she was proud of the TEAms' response, as it was quick and came together in just 24 hours. The tea company also partnered with Feeding America and H-E-B, as well as R.E. Garrison Trucking, Inc., which provided the transportation of the pallets. Milo's is headquartered right here in Alabama, founded in 1964 in Bessemer. From the July 4 Texas flooding, several Alabamians were killed, including 8-year-old Sarah Marsh, of Mountain Brook, and Ileana Santana and Mila, a Mobile grandmother and granddaughter. After just over two weeks since the flooding, three people are still reported missing, according to the city of Kerrville. In a July 16 update, Kerr County officials said at least 107 people, including 37 children, were killed in Kerr County. By Saturday, July 19, Kerville officials announced the number of missing people in Kerr County dropped from more than 160 to three, the release said. At least 135 people were killed in the catastrophic flash flooding across Texas, with the majority of the deaths confirmed in Kerr County. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Yahoo
Food insecurity growing problem in Florida amid possible SNAP cutbacks
Food insecurity affects a significant number of families across Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast. WPTV found that each of the five counties in our viewing area has about 13% of the population that is considered food insecure, according to stats from Feeding America.
