Mary Joesten, a long-time community activist and advocate for those living on the margins of society, was named Nassau County Senior Citizen Woman of the Year last week by County Executive Laura Curran. The award was in recognition of the years of service Joesten has given to Elmont and its surrounding communities.
Joesten has been serving the homeless, hungry, veterans and abused women — to name just a few of her constituencies — since founding the first iteration of the Faith Mission Outreach Center with her late husband Ed in Jamaica, Queens, in 1969.
“I was inspired by the church’s Acts of Corporal Mercy,” Joesten, a lifelong devout Roman Catholic, said in addressing the assembled crowd at the Uniondale Marriott. The Acts of Mercy include feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, clothing the naked and visiting the sick and incarcerated.
Nowadays, Joesten can be found serving hot meals and bagging food at the Pope Francis Hospitality Center, located at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Elmont. There, she serves breakfast and lunch to about 40 people each Saturday, as well as running a food pantry. “Each person is supposed to get 10 items” from the pantry, she said. “That’s 1,600 items a month.” The pantry receives food from Island Harvest, which supplies local pantries with free and low-cost food. In addition, Joesten receives donations from Trader Joe’s, as well as local restaurants and supermarkets, on an ad hoc basis. “It’s always hard to keep the shelves stocked, but all we can do is keep moving forward,” she said.
“You don’t have to be poor to join us,” Joesten added. People on fixed incomes, caregivers who are paying for friends and relatives, the elderly or anyone who’s just lonely — all are welcome,” she said. “Sometimes, you just need a feeling of community, of family.”