York Town News
YCSA and York Community Food Pantry join forces
By Jennifer L. Saunders
YCSA Board of Directors President Tom Carnicelli, York Community Food Pantry Co-Director Marianne Quinn, Food Pantry Director Tom Whelan, YCSA Thrift Shop Manager Cheryl Werner and YCSA Director Lorna Ryan pose for a photo of the town's new service team as the two organizations have come together to better serve York's residents in need.
Photo by Jennifer L. Saunders
Longtime York Community Food Pantry Co-Director Marianne Quinn received an engraved clock honoring her years of volunteerism from new Food Pantry Director Tom Whelan at a special event on Sunday. Not pictured is Co-Director Fran Koerschner, who was unable to attend.
Photo by Jennifer L. Saunders
This past Sunday, April 22, York Community Service Association and the York Food Pantry formally announced their incorporation into one entity.
But, the volunteers and board members of both organizations stressed, nothing is going to change for patrons or volunteers at the pantry that has been run by two volunteer co-directors for the better part of a decade.
York Community Service Association, meanwhile, was incorporated in 1972, though Board of Directors President Tom Carnicelli confirmed the agency began serving local residents long before that date - with records indicating YCSA was helping the people of York back into the 1950s.
"It is a non-profit organization designed to help York citizens in need," Carnicelli told the approximately 50 people who gathered at the York Public Library on Sunday to honor York Food Pantry Co-Directors Fran Koerschner and Marianne Quinn, who have headed up the pantry for the past eight years, and to celebrate the joining of these two organizations.
In the months leading up to Sunday's formal announcement, both Koerschner and Quinn have been considering stepping down from their shared role as director - not leaving the York Food Pantry, but taking a less intensive voluntary role, Quinn explained on Sunday.
"The YCSA is always looking to do more. When Fran and Marianne expressed an interested in bringing the York Community Food Pantry into our organization, we were quick to respond positively," Carnicelli said.
Enter Tom and Pat Whelan, who have been working with the pair managing the pantry for several years. The YCSA will fund the salary to provide a permanent director in Whelan for the pantry.
Although Koerschner could not be in attendance due to a family commitment out of state, Quinn was on hand Sunday and was honored by Whelan with an engraved clock for her years of service. Koerschner's had been presented privately a few days earlier.
Carnicelli, Quinn and Whelan all stressed that York Community Food Pantry patrons and volunteers alike should know that nothing is going to change. The pantry will run just as it always has as Whelan, Quinn and Koerschner have already been working together.
"It's a major, major job and they did it all on a volunteer basis," Whelan said.
The pantry serves between 30 and 40 individuals and families each week.
With YCSA now employing Whelan to oversee the pantry, there will be more regular opportunities to shop for food in such locations as the Good Shepherd Food Bank and to stretch those dollar donations to purchase what is needed most for the pantry's patrons.
Whelan and Quinn stressed that the York Community Food Pantry could not survive without the wonderful support of local residents, businesses, schools, churches and others, and that those donations are needed as much as ever.
"We are totally dependent on donations of money and food," Whelan said, adding a recent trip to an area food bank allowed the volunteers to purchase approximately $1,200 worth of groceries and supplies for about $300 through the discounts available at such locations.
"We couldn't have done it without so many volunteers," Quinn said, promising she will now be among those volunteers who assist in the future.
Whelan agreed, saying the York Community Food Pantry is definitely a community-wide effort.
YCSA, too, relies on volunteers and donations from the community, Carnicelli said, while working to provide services to people in need and the benefit of a thrift store that features clothing and much more to the community at large.
"The thrift shop is what makes everything possible," Carnicelli said, explaining the store is thriving - actually to the point of outgrowing its space - raising funds for York Community Service Association to assist an estimated 300 to 400 individuals and families each year and with similar organizations like the pantry.
Jon and Cheryl Werner oversee the YCSA Thrift Shop and the profits have been growing steadily in recent years. In turn, YCSA Director Lorna Ryan uses those funds to help individuals and families in need, with $95,000 distributed to York residents in 2006 alone.
In addition to help with fuel costs and living expenses, YCSA also offers a summer campership program for local children, under the direction of Mary Mace and Julie Crafts; a college scholarship program, and the Marston Fund, which provides grants of up to $5,000 for such needs as a new roof for a home or a new vehicle to allow a resident to travel to a job opportunity.
"This is what we do," Carnicelli said, adding that the partnership with the York Community Food Pantry makes perfect sense. "The Food Pantry is a wonderful organization, too, and we're thrilled to join forces with it to serve the needs of the people of York."
For more about York Community Food Pantry call 351-1928. To reach YCSA call 363-5504 and to reach the YCSA Thrift Shop call 363-2510.
