As dozens of New Yorkers lined up outside in the rain, shopping carts in hand while waiting for free food, Sofia Moncayo led her team in prayer.
“We are very grateful to these people here. In the name of Jesus we pray, ”she said, and the group of women around her clapped, clapped and responded,“ Amen ”. “Now,” she said, “let’s go to work.”
By that time, they had been working almost non-stop for hours. They picked up heavy boxes, separated thousands of items and cleared the snow from the sidewalk. They were cold, wet and tired. No one would pay them and they didn’t care. They were just happy to be there for someone else that day.
During the coronavirus pandemic, Moncayo led the food distribution program through Mosaic West Queens Church in the Sunnyside neighborhood. The initiative started in March; Moncayo took the reins a month later, as it grew to serve hundreds of people.
Since then, Moncayo has had his own struggles. She was fired from her job with a construction company and remains unemployed. And she also owes five months rent for the martial arts studio she owns with her husband in the neighborhood.
But she continued to lead fundraisers and coordinate dozens of volunteers who distribute more than 1,000 boxes of food to families twice a week.
“I think helping others has to do something chemically to your brain because if we hadn’t been doing everything we’re doing I think it would have been a much scarier time,” she said. . “Being able to dig in and help others really gives you a step back and helps you believe you’ll be fine too.”
Most of the food is donated by a neighborhood restaurant and other sources. The Farmers to Families Food Box program also received assistance, overseen by the US Department of Agriculture.
Moncayo, who was born in Colombia, was moved as a volunteer by her Christian faith because of memories of the food insecurity she faced growing up in New York City. She recalled how she joined her family in queues to fetch bread and cheese from the pantry and how she sometimes felt ashamed.
“One of the things we wanted to make sure is that we don’t see the people on the pantry line as people who need food and that we really focus on it being our food. neighbors.” “
Sunnyside resident Carol Sullivan lost her job as stage manager when Broadway theaters closed due to the virus. At first, she was reluctant to receive food in a pantry, but said that Moncayo and the other volunteers took her in.
“It’s been a connection to the community that I didn’t have before and it also avoids a lot of anxiety about having to have money to pay for food rather than having to pay the bills,” said Sullivan.
“If you have a dollar, you have to stretch it in a lot of places. Having them made the choice less stressful. “
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