By Michael DeSantis

Posted August 3rd, 2022

Read on The Patch

HAUPPAUGE, NY — A free fair for food-insecure seniors on Long Island is set for Friday, Aug. 12 in Hauppauge.

The Senior Resource Fair is set to run from 9 a.m. to noon Aug. 12 at Long Island Cares’ Center for Community Engagement, at 75 Davids Drive, Hauppauge.

The fair is co-sponsored by Long Island Cares – The Harry Chapin Food Bank and PSEG Long Island.

A second fair, for veterans, is scheduled for November at Long Island Cares.

The purpose of the fair is three-fold: provide increased access to nutritious food, offer take-home fresh produce at a special “farmer’s market,” and expose seniors to advocacy efforts on their behalf and the numerous resources available to them, according to Long Island Cares.

Among the events is a farmers market where food will be given away to the seniors who are attending. The food set to be given away includes:

• Corn (Long Island)
• Green Cabbage (Long Island)
• Zucchini (Long Island)
• Yellow Squash (Long Island)
• Green Beans (New York)
• Blueberries (New Jersey)
• Cucumbers (NY/NJ)
• Peaches (New Jersey)
• Romaine (Long Island)
• Beets (Long Island)
• Gold Beets (Long Island)
• Potatoes (USA)
• Onions (USA)
• Italian Eggplant (Long Island)
• Green Pepper (Long Island)
• Beefsteak Tomatoes (Long Island)

Agencies and organizations presenting to seniors about their services and products include:

• AARP
• Aetna Medical Care
• Alzheimer’s Association
• Association for Mental Health and Wellness
• Clear Captions
• Common Health Care
• HWCLI/SNAP
• Island Hills Chorus
• Melissa’s Wish
• Northwell Health (Breast and Prostate Cancer Peer Education)
• Ombudsman Program
• PSEG Long Island
• Rebuilding Together

“Coming together to meet the needs of Long Islanders is at the core of both Long Island Cares and
PSEG Long Island’s missions,” said Dr. Jessica Rosati, chief programs officer at Long Island Cares. “We are grateful for the ongoing partnership of PSEG Long Island in ensuring that seniors are provided with the resources needed to live independently and healthy.”

Long Island Cares began its outreach to seniors in 2020, with its Support Our Seniors (SOS) program. In 2021 more than 18,000 food-insecure seniors at senior centers and housing authorities were served 166,000 meals. Both the number of seniors and meals served represented a 28 percent increase over 2020.

Long Island Cares provides emergency food and supplies to 250,000 Long Islanders suffering from food insecurity. In addition to the food bank location in Hauppauge and the more than 300 food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters and other locations it provides food to, Long Island Cares operates five of its own food pantries, in Huntington Station, Lindenhurst, Hampton Bays, Freeport and Bethpage.

“Supporting the communities where we live and work is part of PSEG Long Island’s mission,” said John Keating, PSEG Long Island’s manager of Economic and Community Development. “We are pleased to partner with Long Island Cares to help reach specific groups of our neighbors who may be struggling with food insecurity. These resource fairs will provide important education about assistance programs, as well as nutritious, locally sourced produce and other food, to help eliminate hunger from their lives.”

PSEG Long Island operates the Long Island Power Authority’s transmission and distribution system under a long-term contract. PSEG Long Island is a subsidiary of Public Service Enterprise Group Inc.