March 24, 2023 at 1:53 p.m.
Free Food Fridge dedicated at Siena College
Siena College is stepping up to fight food insecurity.
The Siena College Student Senate is helping to place a food insecurity refrigerator on the front porch of the St. Thomas More House on Siena’s campus, located on the corner of Route 9 and Fiddlers Lane.
The project is a collaboration between Siena students and Free Food Fridge Albany, which helps place and stock refrigerators with free and available frozen meals, vegetables, fruits, and snacks around the Capital Region.
For several months, Siena has been freezing both family-style and single-serve dishes from its dining hall for Free Food Fridge to pick up and distribute. Meals such as stuffed peppers, chicken parm and beef stew to their fridges all over the city.
“It’s like the circle of food, it’s amazing,” said Rachel Miller, senior director of dining services at Siena.
Siena students are taking it one step further by adding a new fridge to the Free Food Fridge’s rotation. A dedication of the new fridge was held on Thursday, March 23 on the front porch of the St. Thomas More House.
“You might ask why this location, why here?” said Jammella Anderson, Free Food Fridge Albany founder. “Because it is a main artery and there are lots of people in this area who do experience food insecurity. This is like a big sign to say, ‘Hey, we have food.’”
The Free Food Fridge team works with community members, like Siena College, who step up to help stock fridges throughout the region with food items such as ready-made meals, pasta, vegetables, dairy and non-dairy products, and more. The Free Food Fridge has fridge locations in Albany, Schenectady and Troy.
“It’s a supplemental thing,” Anderson said. “Sometimes SNAP benefits run out or money runs low at the end of the month. Anybody is welcome. We want to destigmatize what food insecurity looks like on people. You never know what people are going through, and I think that this is a testament to the fact that we have (the fridge) here…And I think visually, people who aren't using the fridge would be interested in stocking it because it’s right in their neighborhood. And for the people who need it, also for the same reason: it’s right in your neighborhood.”
“Siena's mission is about taking care of each other and taking care of the world and being kind and generous, and this project in and of itself is what we stand for at Siena,” added Miller. “Jammella and Free Food Fridge were a blessing coming to us.”
All food donations to any fridge must go through Free Food Fridge. Donations and volunteers are always welcome. For more information, contact Free Food Fridge Albany at https://freefoodfridgealbany.com/.
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