Newfield community to honor food pantry coordinator

Newfield resident Marge Strosnider has been described as someone who gives an unlimited amount of support to the community, and an individual with a warmth and kindness that is unmatched.

That became apparent to Sue Chaffee, the Newfield library director and a member of the Newfield Lions Club, when she would see Strosnider at various community events.

“Marge is one of our faithful supporters, and she’s always there rooting us on,” Chaffee said.

Strosnider’s most prominent role in town has been the food pantry coordinator at Newfield United Methodist Church, which provides space and refrigeration of supplies for the pantry. A volunteer at the pantry for 42 years, Strosnider has been the coordinator for the past 13 years.

“It’s wonderful,” Strosnider said. “It’s very rewarding and fun. You meet a lot of people, and you get to know that there is a need in the community. It’s wonderful that our community is so supportive of the organization and the families that live here.”

Strosnider is stepping out of the coordinator role and heading back into a volunteer position at the pantry. She isn’t leaving the pantry, but it won’t stop the community from celebrating her.

The Newfield United Methodist Church — located at 227 Main St. — will hold an open house on Saturday, Sept. 21, from 1 to 4 p.m. to give people a chance to thank Strosnider for her years of service as a food pantry coordinator.

“Marge is a unique person. She is a pleasure to work with, which is why we’re doing this [celebration],” said Mary Beth Gehring-Smith, a pantry volunteer and longtime friend of Strosnider. “She’s done so much for the community that I couldn’t possibly list everything. She’s just the type of person that puts everyone else first and doesn’t expect anything in return. She goes out of her way to help everyone.”

Strosnider replaced the late Barb Walker as coordinator in 2011. After Strosnider steps down, Jan Maher will assume the role.

“It’s a huge time commitment for anybody. To do it for 13 years is remarkable,” Gehring-Smith said.

Karen Eisenberg, another pantry volunteer and a friend of Strosnider, said the coordinator position has been “almost a full-time job” for Strosnider.

Gehring-Smith and Eisenberg collectively said that Strosnider handles the paperwork, orders and shops for the food that’s available at the pantry, makes sure all of the equipment is working and much more.

“She defines the pantry,” Eisenberg said. “We depend on her. I think people identify with her easily. She loves people and loves this community, and her love for the community and for people is what her payment is.”

The food pantry at the church is part of the Community Good Neighbor Fund, and food is provided by the Food Bank of the Southern Tier.

The pantry is open the first and third Wednesdays of each month. Volunteers unload the food on Mondays, set up the pantry during the day on Wednesdays and then distribute the food on Wednesday evenings.

Strosnider said in the weeks that the church has a pantry distribution, between 1,000 and 1,500 pounds of food is being handled by a team of roughly 20 to 25 volunteers.

Humbled and maybe a little embarrassed by the upcoming celebration in her honor, Strosnider said the pantry doesn’t run without a “wonderful team.”

“The celebration is a little overwhelming for me,” Strosnider said. “I don’t do [the pantry] by myself; it’s not a one-person operation. It’s a whole team that works together and plays together.”

Strosnider was a nurse at Newfield Elementary School for over 20 years. She retired from that role about 17 years ago, but the positive community impact and energy she had at the school transferred to the pantry.

“Because of her personality, she’s able to make things run smoothly,” Gehring-Smith said. “People enjoy and love working with Marge.”

Chaffee has collaborated with Strosnider to present the meal of the month program, which is made possible by mini grants from the Newfield Community Council. The program entails using food from the pantry, developing a recipe and then making and packaging the meals for distribution.

“She embraced [the program] with open arms, even though it meant more work for her and her team at the pantry,” Chaffee said.

Chaffee worked at the pantry to help prepare the meal for the monthly program, giving her an opportunity to work closely with Strosnider.

“I’ve been able to see her in action [at the food pantry], not just to manage behind-the-scenes and logistics of the food pantry, but also running out to greet food pantry participants and helping on the front end as well,” Chaffee said. “She truly cares about every individual that comes through the food pantry and wants to make sure everybody gets taken care of. It’s quite an experience to work with her.”

The Sept. 21 celebration for Strosnider is for “what she has done for the community,” Eisenberg said.

“I think it would be hard to actually find a community member that has not been impacted by her kindness and her generosity,” Chaffee said. “She’s extremely supportive and generous with her time. She’s an amazing role model and someone we should all aspire to be like.”

Newfield Notes appears every week in Tompkins Weekly. Send story ideas to editorial@vizellamedia.com.