The parish of St. Andrew's Church in Rochester originally set up a minimal cupboard in 1980 at a small storefront on the corner of North St. and Herald St. This was to meet the needs of so many coming for food to the Sisters of Mercy convent and church. The call for more food and expansion was necessary so when the pantry suffered a series of burglaries in 1996 the decision was made to find a location in the neighborhood near the church.
The current location at 892 Portland Ave. was originally rented, but a fundraising campaign allowed the purchase of the building and the development of the building space. A state-of-the-art security system was donated and installed in the building.
In 2010 Saint Andrew's Church was closed. The parish merged to become St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Parish. By 2018 St. Andrew's Food Cupboard Inc. became self-incorporated as a charitable not-for-profit organization and achieved full ownership of the building in 2019. The three second-floor apartments were fully renovated for Andrew's House, our housing ministry. The basement was completely refurbished to allow an enhanced clothing closet with an upstairs showroom adjacent to the Food Cupboard.
St. Andrew's has continued to expand services and awareness. Our grant writing allowed additional food storage of a walk-in cooler, and many freezers and refrigerators for better fresh food storage. As a 100% volunteer organization, we were able to stay open during the pandemic years adapting to the changing needs of the community. We continue to serve the needs of the community through our homebound program, healthy choice food sourcing and development, expanded non-food related provisions, and increased referrals to other organizations. We are responding to the changing demographics of our time. Hospitality is our call. We are a welcoming place of compassion. We are people who listen to those who need us.