HILLSDALE—Your winning FIRST Team 1676 Pascack Pi-oneers, the Pascack Valley Regional High School District’s robotics team, joined forces with Inserra Supermarkets and ShopRite of Hillsdale to combat food insecurity during the 25th anniversary of the Partners in Caring program.
On Sunday, Sept. 22, the team supported Inserra Supermarkets’ ShopRite of Hillsdale, at 372 Broadway, as it celebrated 25 years of the Partners in Caring program with a food pantry drive from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The team told Pascack Press that local pantries need our readers’ help, and our early web version of this story evidently raised considerable awareness.
Shoppers had the opportunity to meet representatives from the Tri-Boro Food Pantry and Helping Hand Food Pantry throughout the day, learning about their work and how we can all support their efforts. To prepare, patrons visited team1676.com to pick up the pantries’ wish lists. Team members also handed out wish lists at the store’s entrance.
The store plumped the food drive’s donations with hot dog sales, led by store employees Sasikala and Angela, tongs always at the ready.
According to Inserra Supermarket’s ShopRite of Hillsdale assistant manager Zamira Lata, the effort fed the pantries beyond expectations. She and store Partners in Caring fundraising coordinator Jack Callaghan described the project as a delight for the store’s employees.
“It was phenomenal,” Lata told Pascack Press afterward. Asked if she had a message for supporters, she said, “Thank you. We’re all here to support the community and we always support the community with donations—we always approve donations.”
ShopRite’s collection bins—Pascack Pi-oneers expert wooden builds, naturally—by the inner store exit, accept contributions of non-perishable food items any day.
he Pi-oneers emphasized to Pascack Press that food insecurity isn’t a problem happening elsewhere—it’s right here in our neighborhoods.
Lisa Ruggieri, coach of the Pascack Pi-oneers , told us, “Sunday was the most amazing day of giving in our community. Thank you so much to Inserra Supermarkets and ShopRite of Hillsdale for giving us all the opportunity to impact the food insecurity in our community.”
She added, “A special thank you to Jack Callaghan from ShopRite of Hillsdale for reaching out to the Pascack Pi-oneers to continue our partnership of keeping awareness of the local food pantries to their extremely generous customers.”
Ruggieri reported these figures on the day’s intake:
- Bags of food: 84
- Pounds of food: 1,680
- Cash donated: $593
- Donated gift cards value: $55
- Approximate total value of donated food: $3,600
She said, “We also want to thank the volunteers from the Tri-Boro Food Pantry and the Hillsdale Helping Hand Food Pantry for their time and dedication. We can’t wait to do it again next year!”
Helping Hand Food Pantry, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, says it serves approximately 400 of our neighbors every month. Seniors, veterans, active-duty military members, and disabled residents rely on the food and support provided by Helping Hand, run entirely by dedicated volunteers. Helping Hand serves residents from Emerson, Hillsdale, Montvale, Oradell, River Vale, Washington Township, Westwood, and Woodcliff Lake.
The Tri-Boro Food Pantry says more than 90% of the families it serves are from the Tri-Boro area, underscoring that hunger is an issue right here at home. From basic groceries like soup and cereal to household necessities like diapers and dish soap, the pantry provides a lifeline to many in need.
The Pascack Pi-oneers FIRST Team 1676 have always been about more than just building robots, and this isn’t their first foray into the cause of alleviating hunger. Based in the Pascack Valley Regional High School District, the team blends its passion for STEAM—science, technology, engineering, arts, and math—with a commitment to community service.
The Pi-oneers operate out of Pascack Hills High School, with members also coming from Pascack Valley High School, and have grown from 35 members in their first year in 2004–2005 to 70 today. Pascack Press has seen that team members don’t just build; they lead, learn, and give back.
As a family-owned and operated business, ShopRite says it has long been committed to making a difference in the communities it serves. This dedication goes beyond providing groceries—it extends into helping neighbors in need. In 1999, ShopRite took this commitment a step further by launching the ShopRite Partners In Caring program, a community-based initiative aimed at fighting hunger on a local level.
Since its inception, the company says, ShopRite Partners In Caring has donated more than $48 million to support more than 2,500 charities, including food banks, soup kitchens, homeless shelters, and senior citizen centers—organizations that work tirelessly to ensure no one in our communities goes hungry.
ShopRite says that thanks to partnerships with various brands, nearly $3 million is donated annually to these vital organizations.