Tackling Food Insecurity

Our community seeks to address food insecurity in NYC by offering emergency meals, supporting other organizations doing critical food access work, and advocating to strengthen our social safety nets.

For nearly 40 years, BJ has offered a weekly soup kitchen that provides fresh, homemade lunches to anyone in need—welcoming all, regardless of age, gender, religion, background, or income. We serve 60–75 guests each week, including children and older adults, and remain open year-round. Meals are prepared in our kosher kitchen by volunteers and served with warmth and dignity in our sanctuary. More than just food, we offer guests a space to sit, socialize, and feel a sense of belonging.

Volunteer Opportunities: Our lunch program is powered by a dedicated team of volunteers. Want to join us?

Wednesday Prep Nights: Join us on select Wednesday evenings from 5:00–7:00 PM to help prepare meals. Volunteers should be able to stand for 2–3 hours, follow directions in the kitchen, and lift 5–10 lbs. Contact Beth Siegel to sign up.

Tuesday Night Bread Runners: Have a car and a few minutes on Tuesday evenings? We need help picking up donated bread from Zabar’s at 8:00 PM and bringing it back to the synagogue. Contact Kiana to get involved.

Thursday Lunch Distribution: Help serve our guests on Thursdays from 11:30 AM–1:15 PM, ensuring each person is welcomed with kindness and respect. Contact Kiana to volunteer.

West Side Campaign Against Hunger (WSCAH), housed in the Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew on 86th Street and West End Avenue, alleviates hunger by ensuring that all New Yorkers have access with dignity to a choice of healthy food and supportive services. Our organizations have been longtime partners, bolstering each other’s efforts to address food insecurity on the Upper West Side and throughout NYC. WSCAH understands that addressing food insecurity requires providing not just healthy food but also access to social services such as utility and housing support, SNAP (food stamps) benefits, health insurance, educational programs, eviction prevention services, and so much more. 

BJ is a longtime partner of the West Side Campaign Against Hunger, based just blocks away from our synagogue within the Church of St. Paul & St. Andrew. WSCAH is a leader in food justice, providing New Yorkers with access to healthy food and essential services like SNAP, eviction prevention, utility and housing support, and health insurance enrollment.

Volunteer with WSCAH: Join BJ volunteers in assembling and distributing food packages with WSCAH. Sign up via NY Cares or stay tuned for upcoming 2025–2026 special volunteer dates with BJ.

Contribute During Key Campaigns: Each year, BJ supports WSCAH through seasonal giving drives, including a Kol Nidre Appeal (High Holy Days), Healthy Foods Holiday Challenge (Thanksgiving), Matanot L’Evyonim (Purim).

Visit wscah.org to learn more about their ongoing impact.

While we seek to ease the immediate needs and injustices we see in our city around food insecurity, we are also committed to being a part of long-term solutions. We advocate alongside our partners for stronger and more accessible safety net programs—like SNAP, affordable housing, and healthcare—that address the root causes of hunger and poverty in our city. When we raise our voices together, we move closer to a New York where no one goes hungry.