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COURIER L 14 IFE, JULY 12–18, 2019 M BR B G
Out’s budget, and in
April, Councilman
Justin Brannan (D–Bay
Ridge) pledged $42,500.
Neve said he would
need $450,000 in order
to run the food pantry
smoothly.
Local religious
organizations and
charity groups have
also donated small sums
to Reaching-Out, but
according to Neve, the
organization does not
serve enough families
to attract the attention
of large foundations,
making sizable checks
hard to come by. And
with Reaching-Out’s
$48,000 annual rent,
Neve has grown more
desperate.
“I asked everybody
for funding,” Neve
said. “I’ve reached out
to Council members
almost to beg them. But
I feel like it’s fallen on
deaf ears.”
In addition to its food
pantry, Reaching-Out
offers tax assistance
and homeless outreach
to low-income residents,
as well as help applying
to government
assistance programs.
The nonprofi t also hosts
several annual events,
including a backpack
giveaway that offers
kids back-to-school gear,
a Thanksgiving turkey
donation event, and a
yuletide extravaganza
called “Operation
Christmas Smiles”
that features live
performances by Disney
characters, arcade
games, and meet-andgreets
with Santa Claus.
But with Reaching
Out’s threadbare
budget, the group has
been forced to reel in
its social services —
eliminating its senior
programming entirely
— and has considered
slashing its annual
parties. Neve worries
that if money does not
come in soon, Reaching-
Out will have to start
cutting registered
families by September.
“I don’t want to tell
people to their faces that
they can’t come here,”
Neve said. “I don’t know
where else they can go.”
Neve began Reaching-
Out more than 30 years
ago from the back of
his used van, where he
handed out hot food and
clothing to Bensonhurst
residents. In 1996, the
organization established
a supermarket-style food
pantry out of its building
on Bath Avenue, which
allowed families to shop
for groceries on shelves
rather than taking
donations. After moving
to a larger facility in
2007, demand for the
organization’s services
soared: between 2015
and 2019, the number
of registered members
grew by 50 percent.
“People don’t want
to come here, but they
don’t have a choice,” said
Neve, who hopes to come
across more funding in
the coming months.
“There is the
fi nancial support out
there,” Neve said,
citing a number of local
foundations that donate
to nonprofi ts like his.
“How could they ignore
what’s happening?”
BY ROSE ADAMS
A Bensonhurst pantry
that’s been providing
food to needy families
for almost 30 years has
been forced to turn away
hungry Brooklynites in
the midst of funding
shortages, according to
the group’s executive
director.
“This is now the
horror story,” said Tom
Neve, a Bensonhurst
native and retired
Department of
Sanitation worker who
founded the Reaching-
Out Community
Services in 1989.
Located on New
Utrecht Avenue between
77th and 78th streets,
the volunteer-based
nonprofi t is a staple
of southern Brooklyn,
offering a range of
social services and food
to 9,800 families from
across the borough. But
while donations have
plateaued in recent
years, demand for
Reaching-Out’s services
has grown, forcing the
organization to turn
away needy families,
according to Neve.
“We’ve gotten to the
point where we just can’t
operate,” he said.
Neve, who receives
a annual stipend and
employs two full-time
workers, says the
nonprofi t receives city
funding, but claims
that money fails to
cover even a quarter of
its costs. Last year, the
City Council funneled
$30,000 into Reaching-
PANTRY PANIC: Local elementary school students visit
Reaching-Out’s food pantry in Bensonhurst, which is
struggling to survive because of funding shortages.
Reaching-Out Community Services
Bensonhurst pantry needs help
Reaching-Out asks for more funds to help hungry Brooklynites
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