When the coronavirus pandemic shuttered schools and businesses in March 2020, hunger swept across Long Island in ways few could have anticipated. With unemployment surging and access to school meals suddenly cut off, thousands of families faced the unthinkable: empty pantries and no clear path to the next meal.
In the midst of this crisis, three women — Courtney Callahan, Linda Eastman and Christine Rice — took action. What began as an emergency food relief effort, called Nosh, is now marking five years of serving the North Shore with compassion, dignity and community spirit.
“We were just going to be here for as long as the pandemic was, which at that time I thought was going to be no more than a few months,” Eastman recalled. “I certainly didn’t even think it was going to be as long as it was.”
Rice, the director of the Glen Cove Senior Center, remembers receiving the order to close for what was originally thought would be just two weeks.
“To me, a two-week period seemed forever,” Rice recounted. “I never thought it would last this long, ever.”
Yet within days, that sense of “forever” became reality. Instead of waiting for normalcy to return, Callahan, Eastman and Rice mobilized.
“There was just — there’s a pandemic, people were trying to process that,” Callahan said. “But I prayed for, like, an hour, and I was just, like, I know that there’s something that we have to — we have to stand up for people.”
Callahan tapped into her experience serving children and families at St. John’s of Lattingtown Episcopal Church. She called on trusted contacts and assembled a group of committed volunteers. From the start, Nosh operated differently from traditional supplemental food organizations. It focused on direct delivery, reaching people who couldn’t leave home or were afraid to.
“We developed our Nosh bag in accordance with (the department of ) Homeland Security,” Callahan said. “And explaining how the meals were designed to feed a family for two dinners. “It was supposed to give some normalcy that families could cook two meals together.”
Five years later, the numbers tell a sobering story. Nosh now serves 750 families per week, an increase from 650 in recent years.
“Right now, I would say this: Covid was a tragedy,” Callahan said. “So many lives were lost. It was hard on so many families. “Right now I believe it’s a food crisis for so many people.”
Eastman said her heart has been “filled with so much with regards to all the amazing volunteers that come here and help out every day.” She said that many volunteers could be doing anything else, but they’re here helping and giving back to their community.
Rice echoed the emotional toll and deepened awareness that came with five years of working on the front lines of hunger relief. “Until you’re faced with it in your community and seeing people struggling, it makes a huge difference,” she said. “There needs to be a lot more hands-on help, and it needs to be continual help.”
Nosh has grown not just in numbers, but in recognition and partnerships. Island Harvest and Long Island Cares now supply much of Nosh’s food. The organization eventually opened a pantry and began welcoming seniors and others who prefer to choose their own food. But delivery remains a cornerstone. As the cost of living continues to rise and inflation drives up grocery prices, the need shows no signs of slowing.
“The world is a harder place to feed your children now,” Callahan said. “It’s a harder place to feed your grandparents. It is affecting all ages.”
Yet despite the hardships, the founders reflect on Nosh’s growth with gratitude and hope.
“Nosh would never have survived unless it was in the marrow and the ethers of this place,” Callahan said. “ Every single person is equal and lifts their weight for good.”
Looking ahead, Rice said she is concerned with the rising cost of food.
“Although Covid is over, food insecurity is not,” she said. “And I don’t see that stopping any time in the near future.”
The three of them agree that even donating one box of food can impact lives, and they encourage those who are able to continue donating food. It can be dropped off at 15 Hill Street in Glen Cove. Nosh’s emergency hotline is (516) 366-0277.
