“We’re a beating heart,” said Chioma Okoro, Xavier Mission’s Director of Outreach. That beating heart is felt every week in Chelsea, where Xavier Mission and Catholic Charities of New York work side by side to ensure neighbors facing hardship can access fresh, nutritious food with dignity. What begins with a warm welcome often ends with a smile — and a bag full of essentials — thanks to a partnership grounded in compassion and community.
Founded in 1983 by the Church of St. Francis, Xavier Mission — a partner agency of Catholic Charities of New York — has long served the city through five core outreach programs: a clothing distribution center, financial assistance, a food pantry, a life-skills program, and a Sunday soup kitchen.
“We feel what the community is lacking and go above and beyond to make sure that we’re partnering with the right people and providing what is required for the community,” Okoro added.
Okoro oversees the organization’s clothing and food distributions, manages produce procurement for the pantry, and coordinates other essential resources. She shared how her background inspired her to join Xavier Mission.
“My education is in public health to provide services for the less privileged or unhoused and people suffering from insecurity,” she said. “They do a lot of work [in the community]. I just man a certain portion of it, but they serve the community and have been doing that for over 20 years.”
But with Thanksgiving rapidly approaching — and the disruption of SNAP benefits affecting about 3 million New Yorkers — Xavier Mission has been working overtime to meet rising needs.
“We’ve doubled our efforts, and we also got double the grants from our sponsors,” said Okoro. “Food insecurity is a big deal in our community. Being able to help them to bridge that gap and just be comfortable is a very important mission.”
And for Okoro, that mission is deeply personal.
“For someone who has been on the receiving end of food insecurity, just seeing this and knowing that once upon a time people didn’t have this availability of resources, it gives me joy,” she shared. “It makes me feel warm that this is available for people when they have such needs.”
Grocery Costs Have Increased the Need
Daisy Minaya is no stranger to Xavier Mission or its services. On Monday, she joined the crowd of other New Yorkers in need at the pantry to receive a bag of fresh food provided in partnership with Catholic Charities.
“I’ve been coming here a few years,” Minaya said. “They’ve helped me a lot.”
She pointed to rising grocery prices as one of the reasons why she, like many others, must rely on Xavier Mission’s food pantry.
“You’d go shopping with $100 a long time ago, now you go shopping with $100 and you get nothing,” she said.
Despite the challenges posed by soaring prices, the upcoming holidays, and the colder weather, Minaya said the impact of Xavier Mission remains undeniable.
“They take care of us. For Thanksgiving they give you dinner. Around here is the best, and the people working here are very nice,” she said.
“They help you with clothes, they help you with food. They help you with whatever thing you need,” Minaya continued.
Xavier Mission’s Impact
Maria Alvarez, a lifelong Manhattan resident, is another familiar face at Xavier Mission’s food distributions. She began relying on food pantries after being forced to retire for medical reasons.
“I’m living by myself and it’s hard,” Alvarez said. “By the time I get finished with the second week of the month, my money is gone. And I have to manage how I’m going to feed myself.”
The financial strain brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic only deepened her reliance on Xavier Mission — beginning to receive meals from the Sunday soup kitchen.
“After COVID I was like ‘Wow, I can’t manage this.’ My bills are going up and my funds are the same. I can’t survive on what I’m making.”
“We see more people — and it’s people I never thought would have to go to pantries and they never thought they would go to pantries,” she added.
Xavier Mission has been a lifeline for Alvarez.
“The most important thing is the type of food they supply. It’s healthy. I had stomach surgery so I’m limited to what I can eat,” she explained.
“From day one, I’ve never went bad with anything that they have supplied, and if I can’t use it, I supply it to my elderly neighbors that can’t come out,” Alvarez continued.
Grateful for the support she’s received, Alvarez hopes to begin volunteering with Xavier Mission in the future. It’s a full-circle moment that reflects just how deeply the organization’s compassion can transform lives.
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