We like Penn Yan. We like its three book stores (two used, one new) and its library, its friendly historic Main Street which in season has a sidewalk farmer’s market. We like the buggies, the library, and the Outlet Trail, plus its location on the lake. We like the numerous eating places, and the growing number of art venues. And we often find ourselves stopping in to the Pinwheel Market and Café.
Sometimes we have a quiche or a sandwich for lunch, or a cold soda in summertime. When we stopped on the day of New Year’s Eve we got hot chocolates — a dark rich chocolate that took some time and effort to make, rather than just being dumped out of an envelope from a box bought in the supermarket. It’s a quiet, welcoming spot to stop. It has free wi-fi. There are pies and pastries. The Pinwheel Market offers gifts by a hundred local artists and artisans, and interesting foodstuffs.
All of which may seem nice, but pretty much par for the course. But — every ten dollar purchase feeds a child for a weekend.
Pinwheel Market and Café is operated by Milly’s Pantry, named for Milly Bloomquist, who served for thirty years as the Penn Yan school nurse. For half a century she’s been a driving force to enlist volunteers and deliver help. She developed Help for the Needy and Christmas for the Needy. So tireless and so sustained has her work been that two years ago President Obama honored her in a White House ceremony, presenting Camilla Bloomquist with the Presidential Citizens Medal.
In 2008 all of this caring took on a new dimension, with formal not-for-profit organization, a board of directors, and, a year later, purchase of the Odd Fellows hall as a home for the market and café — plus class and meeting and party space on the upper floors.
This is all good from the point of view of the visitor or customer. But more to the point is what Milly’s Pantry is accomplishing. According to the 2013 annual report, this includes:
*Over 500 backpacks with kid-friendly foods distributed at Yates County schools EVERY FRIDAY, so kids in need won’t need to go hungry over the weekend.
*650 backpacks of teacher-requested school supplies issued every August… plus some supplemental materials through the year.
*Eat Smart New York — an eight-week program in collaboration with Cornell Cooperative Extension, teaching participants how to prepare healthy meals on a low income. Participants help plan and prepare the meals, and each family gets the ingredients needed to do it again at home.
*Milly’s Pantry Cooking Classes — a program soon to start that uses the second-floor commercial kitchen to teach middle and high schoolers how to plan, shop for, and prepare nutritious meals.
Notice that whenever possible these programs train and empower recipients, helping them to maximize what they’ve got to work with. Notice too that while half or more of Yates County students qualify for free or reduced price meals, only about half of THEM get help from Milly’s Pantry — AND not all the students who are eligible are actually signed up for free or reduced price meals in the first place. So despite the staggering amount of work these volunteers and their supporters are doing, the unmet needs are still huge. Food insecurity is deep, not just in Yates County but throughout our region.
Milly’s Pantry has a simple driving idea: So children won’t go hungry. They rely on gifts (PO Box 734, Penn Yan, 14527), or drop in the next time you’re in Penn Yan. It’s worth the stop — on many different levels.