The Long Island Council of Churches' Freeport Emergency Food Center will serve its final meal on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, closing a pantry that for years fed thousands of nearby residents. Volunteers and clients say the move rips a sudden hole in a local safety net that was already stretched thin by rising costs and growing need.
Closure and the numbers behind it
According to News 12, the agency reports that the center has served nearly 4 million meals between 2016 and 2026. Deacon Anthony Achong, the pantry's director of administration and operations, told the outlet that visits "grew month to month" and climbed from about 244 people in March 2025 to 1,244 in March 2026, roughly a 500 percent increase. He did not give a reason for the shutdown.
Where the pantry operated
The Long Island Council of Churches lists its emergency food center at 353 West Sunrise Highway in Freeport and publishes hours and annual meal totals on its site. Long Island Council of Churches notes that the pantry operates by appointment and provides year-by-year figures that show the center's steady role in emergency food distribution for the community.
Rising need across Long Island
The closure comes at a time when regional food networks say demand is stubbornly high. Long Island Cares reports that hundreds of thousands of Long Islanders are food insecure and that it distributes millions of pounds of food each year to partner pantries, underscoring the strain on the island's emergency food system.
Where people can turn now
With the LICC center going dark, residents who relied on the Freeport pantry will have to turn to other distributions or nearby partner pantries. Island Harvest offers an interactive pantry finder and phone support to help neighbors locate alternative sites, and dialing 2-1-1 can also connect people with immediate local resources.
How to help
Donors looking to help fill the gap can contribute to the Long Island Council of Churches or to the larger food banks that support partner pantries. LICC accepts both item donations and monetary gifts through its portal, and Long Island Cares lists ways to donate and volunteer in support of the wider emergency food network.
