Старожилы Куинса борются с голодом на фоне процветающего гастрономического района

Queens is one of the greatest food destinations in the world. On any given day in Astoria, you can find people lining up for Greek pastries, Mexican tacos, Italian sandwiches and countless other dishes that reflect the cultures and communities that make this borough special. But there’s a contradiction hiding in plain sight: many of the older New Yorkers who made Queens what it is are facing food insecurity, often behind closed doors and away from the visible bustle of our restaurants and markets. In fact, nearly 60,000 of the borough’s older adults 65 years old and older live below the federal poverty line, putting them at risk of social isolation and hunger without the help of home-delivered meals and additional anti-hunger programs. Working at Citymeals on Wheels, where we deliver meals and food to older people who can’t shop or cook, I regularly speak with older people in Queens who struggle with mobility and have trouble leaving their homes. On top of that, most of them are struggling amidst the affordability crisis, as they live on fixed incomes and have to keep up with rising costs. While many people travel across the city to enjoy the borough’s restaurants and markets, older locals often can’t enjoy the same food scene they helped build. The food we celebrate today didn’t appear overnight. The seeds of our culinary circles were planted and cultivated by previous generations of immigrants from all over the world who settled in Queens seeking opportunity and community. They opened small businesses, shared family recipes and helped transform the neighborhoods we consider our city’s heart and soul today. This story resonates deeply with me. I moved to Astoria from Puerto Rico five years ago and have lived in Queens ever since. Like so many newcomers before me, I quickly learned that behind every beloved neighborhood institution is a person with a lifetime of work and sacrifice who helped make it possible. One of those people is my landlord, an older immigrant from Greece who lives alone in our building. When I first arrived in New York, he gave us more than a place to live—he trusted us. That trust allowed us to build a home and, unexpectedly, a friendship. It still amazes me that two people from such different backgrounds could form a bond that goes beyond simply sharing a building. He often shares Greek cookies with me, and around the holidays, I return the favor with Puerto Rican treats like coquito and arroz con dulce. Through our friendship, I’ve come to appreciate something that can be easy to overlook in a fast-changing neighborhood: older people are more than just neighbors. They are mentors, storytellers and living connections to the history that came before us. And they need our help to remain connected to the communities we all love. Over the last decade, the number of older adults in Queens has increased by 35%, making them one of the borough’s fastest-growing populations in a county that already has more older people than any other in the state. With so many of them living below the federal poverty line, they are vulnerable to hunger and social isolation. At Citymeals, we work to ensure homebound older adults receive not only nutritious meals but also the connection that comes with someone showing up at the door. Last year alone, we delivered more than 472,000 meals to over 5,000 older Queens residents. We also continue expanding programs that provide additional groceries and fresh food because one meal a day isn’t always enough. But nonprofits like Citymeals can’t do this work alone. To sustain the communities that make Queens special, we need to expand food access and strengthen the anti-hunger programs older adults rely on. We need to deliver more food to older adults with higher needs where they are. As New York City becomes increasingly unaffordable, anti-hunger programs like ours help older people remain healthy, connected and as independent as possible in the neighborhoods they helped build. The responsibility to care for older New Yorkers lies with all of us. Get to know an older neighbor. Check in on someone who lives alone. Volunteer with groups like ours and others that are combating hunger and isolation in your community. And next time you stop at your favorite restaurant, deli or bakery, take a moment to think about the generations of New Yorkers who came before and helped make that place possible. Angela Carlo-Pujol is a Program Initiatives and Evaluation Associate at Citymeals on Wheels and an Astoria resident.