Local parish food pantry, with new name and new management, continues work after death of its beloved longtime leader, Sr. Margaret Smyth

The wind of change blows through the halls of the Social Parish and Food Pantry, formerly the North Fork Spanish Apostolate. 

Many of the people are the same, and it serves Riverhead with the same diligence as it ever did, but one person is missing: Sister Margaret Smyth. 

Sr. Margaret ran the pantry for 23 years, and was a pillar of her community until she died last year at age 83. In some ways, she is still at the pantry. Staff and volunteers will joke about Sr. Margaret laughing at them from heaven, or riff on her signature wit. The door to her former office still has a sign that says “Margaritaville” on the outside, and signage by St. John the Evangelist church still directs visitors to “Hermana Margarita.”

“Her death was definitely felt. They’re very big shoes to fill.” Jessica Ruiz, coordinator at the Social Parish and Food Pantry, said. “I don’t think there’ll ever be another Sr. Margaret.”

But Sr. Margaret’s presence is most felt in the work that continues at the food pantry. During a visit to the pantry Tuesday, people were zipping around the building, phones were ringing, people were knocking at the door, and staff and volunteers balance leaning towers of food and documents to make sure everyone is taken care of.

“We continue to keep her mission alive,” Ruiz said. 

The pantry still distributes food and clothing, offers financial assistance and nationally-certified document translation services. It is also partnering with other organizations, like Catholic Charities and the Department of Labor. Catholic Charities recently hosted an immigration clinic at the pantry and the Department of Labor has a representative there.

The pantry’s stock waxes and wanes as it always did, but the seasonal ebbs and flows are now moderated by the scope of the pantry’s primary service Riverhead. “There were people coming from Brentwood and Mastic,” Ruiz said. She stressed that they don’t turn people away, but give them the goods they need and direct them to resources that serve their area instead. “We wanted to just stick to the Riverhead community so that we can help them.”

The food pantry is still worked mostly by volunteers. Bilingual and monolingual volunteers gather bags of goods from the shelves of the pantry, and give them out to Riverhead residents in need. 

“I would love to see younger volunteers get involved,” Ruiz said. It’s “not just the feeling of putting food in a bag, but seeing what the needs are in the community,” she said. 

“If it wasn’t for the volunteers, we would not be able to run,” Ruiz said.

Ruiz addressed Riverhead’s Latin American community directly:

“Todavía estamos aquí, ayudando, haciendo el trabajo. Aunque la Hermana Margarita no está, la extrañamos extremadamente, y queremos que sepan que seguimos su misión. Esta oficina es de la comunidad y para la comunidad. Estamos aquí para recibir ayuda y para dar ayuda.”

[“We are still here, helping and working. Even though Sr. Margaret is no longer with us, and we miss her deeply, we want people to know that we are continuing her mission. This office is of the community and for the community. We are here to receive help and to give help.”]

Another change since the new management is that the pantry has more frequent drives for seasonal events or specific items. Right now, the pantry is hosting a back-to-school drive, collecting $25 gift cards to Walmart and Target to cover the gaps in school supplies given out by other charitable organizations. It is also accepting non-clothing and non-food donations for a fundraising yard sale in September.

The pantry is open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, and 1 to 5 p.m.. on Wednesdays.