USDA Food Box Distribution hosted at Gouverneur Community Center

by Rachel Hunter

North Country community members started getting in line for the USDA Food Box Distribution Program as early as 6:15 a.m. on Thursday, August 6 on State Highway 58 in front of the Gouverneur Community Center.

The free event was open all with no registration necessary. Staff and volunteers were on-hand to provide curbside pick-up of family style food boxes. Families received a total of three boxes – including a box of frozen meats, a box of produce and a box of dairy products. North Country community member were informed that products would be provided while they lasted, and the program would end when all products have been distributed.

The USDA Food Box Distribution Program is part of the Federal COVID-19 Food Assistance Program. The program is intended to purchase surplus commodities to assist farms and food businesses while making products available for free to those suffering from the economic impacts of the pandemic. This specific event is made possible by the work of the Gouverneur Community Center, Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County, the Gouverneur Neighborhood Center and GardenShare. Local distributors, such as Renzi Foodservice, deliver the products to non-profit partners who manage distribution to local families and individuals.

While no early arrivals were requested, distribution commenced in advance of the 10 a.m. start time. Town of Gouverneur Supervisor Dave Spilman, Jr. reported to the Town of Gouverneur Council at its Aug. 11 meeting that the Renzi Foodservice truck arrived at 8:30 a.m.

“We had a bunch of great volunteers,” Supervisor Spilman said. “They got it all unloaded in a half-hour, 45 minutes. At 9:15 a.m., we started handing out and it was all gone before 10 a.m. They got 20 pounds of frozen meat, 20 pounds of produce, and 20 pounds of dairy. It really went well. I had some disappointed people that showed up at 10 a.m. And I was warned that this is how this happens from the lady that does it every week up in Edwards… She does it a 5 p.m. at night, and has people lining up at 2 p.m. But it was a great turnout. We helped a lot of people, and I want to thank all the volunteers who came down and helped – and Cornell Cooperative Extension, I can’t say enough about them. Hopefully we’ll be able to do another one in the future.”

Town of Gouverneur Supervisor Dave Spilman Jr. and Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County Executive Director Patrick Ames started turning away vehicles on State Highway 58 at 9:59 a.m. The last box was distributed in front of the Gouverneur Community Center at about 10:15 a.m. The speed at which these USDA food boxes were distributed showcases the incredible need for such programs in the Gouverneur community. It was through the dedicated volunteer support of many St. Lawrence County agencies and local community members that made this event possible. Much gratitude was extended to the volunteers as the motorists made their way through the curbside pickup lines.

According to Supervisor Spilman, about 340 to 360 USDA Food Box Distributions were made available to the North Country at the Gouverneur Community Center, 4673 State Highway 58, Gouverneur, NY.