Catholic Health's Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre donates 22,000 pounds of food

On June 17, a team from Catholic Health’s Mercy Hospital donated more than 22,000 pounds of food to a variety of local nonprofits in an effort to combat food insecurity on Long Island.

Thanks to a grant from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation, Mercy employees and volunteers assembled and distributed 1,200 bags of perishable and nonperishable food items to 10 Nassau County-based organizations. The intention is that each family receives two bags (a perishable and nonperishable), which contains enough food to feed a family of four for a week.

“The communities we serve are an extension of who we are at Mercy; therefore, I am extremely grateful to Mother Cabrini for allowing us to provide food access to families who might be struggling to put food on the table,” Mercy Hospital President Peter Scaminaci said, according to a release. “With food insecurity on the rise, given the current climate, I am hopeful that initiatives like this one will help us to continue to combat the issue locally.”

Each family will receive 37 pounds of food: nonperishable items such as pasta, beans, granola, rice and more, and perishable items such as fruits and vegetables. As an added bonus, families will also receive disinfecting wipes.

Organizations that received food vary from pantries, to women shelters to parishes.

The event is one of many food drives that Mercy employees participate in. Just recently, the Friends of Mercy, an organization that fundraises for the hospital, and the staff started the Giving Garden, where they grow fresh vegetables that will be donated to the Nursing Sisters of the Sick Poor and others facing hunger in the community.

Courtesy Catholic Health’s Mercy Hospital; compiled by Mike Smollins