PINE HILL, N.Y – If you walk into the Morton Memorial Library in Shandaken, Ulster County, you'll notice it's one of a kind.
The shelves are stacked not only with books, but vital food items like apple sauce, chicken tortilla soup and protein bars.
Director Gisela Vella partners with the Hudson Valley Food Bank to help combat food insecurity throughout the community.
“This is something that’s important and expensive," Vella said. "I think the families can’t always afford the extra."
A native of Germany, Vella said she recognized the need for more accessible and affordable groceries in the area.
“The bigger grocery stores would be in Kingston or Delhi, which is the other way for people who live on this side of the county,” Vella said.
That's why Vella joins other volunteers to fill grocery bags every week to support roughly 40 families.
Barbara Ackerley, 73, lives in Fleischmanns, a rural area near Morton Memorial Library. She said she relies on Vella every week to help feed herself and her grandchildren.
“Thank God the food bank gives us cupcakes, cookies and we can make them with the kids," Ackerley said. "That helps a lot, the cake mixes, the bread, etcetera.”
Ackerley told Spectrum News 1 as a widow living on a fixed income, the food pantry is a free resource she is thankful for.
"She (Vella), a lot of times, has the basics, which carries us through the last week of the month," Ackerley said. "The bread, the milk, the eggs.. You can do everything with that."
Vella said the goal is to help expand the library's food pantry to serve more Ulster County residents. She also said plans are underway to relocate the food pantry to the Pine Hill Community Center.
For more information about the program, residents are encouraged to contact the Morton Memorial Library.