Residents braved the cold Wednesday morning, January 27, for another week of Wellness Wednesdays, the program sponsored by Councilmember Robert E. Cornegy, Jr. (D-Bedford Stuyvesant, Northern Crown Heights), Campaign Against Hunger, Met Council, and the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) among others, that hands out free food and resources to NYCHA’s Eleanor Roosevelt Houses residents at 109 Lewis Avenue.
“It is crazy and unconscionable that during this time, there would be any cut. I know there’s a $9 billion budget deficit due to COVID spending but we got to spend the money where it means the most which is in our housing developments and with our hard-working families who really don’t want a hand out. They really want opportunity,” said Cornegy.
“We’re going to weather the storm,” said Tenant Association President Vernona Bradham, who scrambled hard to get things organized for residents lined up and down the gate waiting to be served.
The ACS tables offered food, toys, cleaning supplies and cloths, face garters, and masks, coupled with individual bags of rice, pasta, and cans of beans to anyone who signed up.
“We got great partners that are on the ground with us every Wednesday making sure that the families who are fighting food insecurity have opportunities to get the supplements that they need,” said Cornegy.
Cornegy said that since he’s on the budget negotiation team, he will be a fierce champion to these families in need. He said they average roughly 500 families every week, and have run out of food and supplies on occasion.
“Until opportunity comes enmass, we got to be here on the ground. NYCHA is the most underserved community in all of our underserved communit[ies],” said Cornegy.
“We got 21 housing developments in Bedford Stuyvesant alone and I’ve decided to make a commitment to those families who made a commitment to these communities, they’ve been a backbone before it was sexy to live in Bed-Stuy. Our NYCHA developments held us down. Now it’s sexy to be here and we can’t forget them,” he added.
