Some friends recognized that many Deaf people are on a fixed budget and were having a hard time being able to afford the food they needed. [SP1] [JB2] But instead of just talking about it and saying, “That’s too bad,” and moving on, they decided to do something about it.

They founded Rochester Deaf Kitchen, a food pantry focused on serving the Deaf community in the area. It took years of work but they were able to open their doors for the first time on August 30 and the kitchen is currently open two days a week.

We interviewed one of the founders, Zach Ennis, and he explained the amazing journey from the initial idea to the opening and how it’s going now.

Q&A with Rochester Deaf Kitchen Co-Founder

Where did the idea to start the food pantry come from?

I did not grow up rich. We had to manage our money carefully. From time to time we had to use food pantries and other food-assistance services so the concept was not new to me. I always felt it was a challenge and tough to really understand the process. Growing up, I always felt like we had to jump through hoops to get food, like we had to “earn” it.

As I grew older I realized, no, no one is trying to make it hard. They all want to make it easy but the fact I was Deaf and missed things due to communication issues made it an obstacle course just for me to get food and other basic needs. Did they intend to make it hard? No, they didn’t.

I started volunteering at different food pantries with the thought that I could also advise them on how to deal with Deaf in the future. I started doing that around 2011. Through that experience I got the idea that we need our own full program fully designed for the Deaf by the Deaf community and with our community values, culture, and language.

Most food pantries out there do a great job. They’re overwhelmed. The demand is increasingly high. They try to make it efficient to help as many people as possible in the time they have available. Deaf people do fall through the cracks. So that’s where the idea came from that we do need our own food pantry to better serve the needs of our own community.

When and how did you start the process?

We started the official paperwork in 2021. Before that, in 2020 we started talking to community stakeholders to find out if we needed our own organization or if we should expand on an already-existing program. We realized we needed our own program. So the paperwork started in 2021 but it took longer than usual due to the pandemic. That caused a lot of delay. All the paperwork was complete in 2022, including the 501(c)3 filing and registering with New York state as a charity.

At that point we started identifying where we should have our pantry program. We selected and entered into a partnership with Rochester School for the Deaf (RSD). Once we had the location, we started the process to formally partner with the local food bank. Then we finally opened in 2023.

When did you open and what were the expectations vs the reality?

Our Deaf community food pantry officially opened August 30, 2023. Based on our forecasts we expected to serve more than 1,000 people by December 31.  However, we are now two months in (at the time of taping) and we just hit 2,000. We grew fast! We knew the demand would be high. My first concern was building trust with the community so they would feel comfortable coming to our program. I thought that would be more of a challenge.

As it turns out we do have a well-designed program that fits well in the Deaf community and their values and needs with full communication access. So, we grew fast. Which is great and sad at the same time. Great that we are able to do this, but sad because it shows that the need really is high.

Can you tell us about the volunteers that are involved?

Right now we are new so we are an all-volunteer organization. No one gets paid right now. We have 48 volunteers in different roles based on different needs.

We are open two days a week, Wednesdays from 9-11 am and Sundays from 1-4 pm. Some volunteers focus on those times, meaning they show up before we open to make sure everything is set up and ready. Some will help make sure things flow smoothly at the entrance. Others are inside the pantry helping people know what to take and how much. Some of our patrons don’t know how to cook specific items so we have people who can explain that. More volunteers are outside waiting to help carry the food to people’s cars.

Thursday is our big day – it’s our stock day when the truck arrives with pallets of food. We need to sort through that food. Sometimes something is leaking or something is expired so they must be discarded. Once the filtering process is done, we restock the pantry. It’s a big operation which takes all morning. Ten to fifteen volunteers help with that.

Some volunteers support us with our communication efforts: social media, editing, captioning, etc. So we have 48 volunteers right now, and counting.

You’ve said a $1 donation pays for five meals. How does that work?

We partner with a food bank here in Western NY. Food banks and pantries are different. The food bank is responsible to gather and stock up food. The pantries are the ones who find the people who need the food and provide that support to them. That’s an important partnership. All the food banks around the country cooperate at a national level with an organization called Feeding America. That is a large organization which has a lot of purchasing power allowing them to buy food in bulk. Also many large companies donate money or “rescued” food to them. That’s food that may have been overproduced or didn’t sell for various reasons. That’s donated to Feeding America which is then redistributed to the various food banks nationwide. We are a member agency which allows us to enter their portal and see their current inventory and order what we need based on what our community needs and prefers.

With the purchasing power of that program and other donations, it breaks down to 5 meals per dollar donated. That’s the formula we go by so when people donate money we know how much food we can get directly from that.

You said you had more demand than expected. How have you been able to meet that demand?

There were a lot more people coming than I expected. But we planned for that. We have several contingency plans. We are thankful for the community-based donations. Many individuals donated money which helped us cover the costs of the extra food. So, we’ve been able to cover the higher than expected demand and costs so far.

Fortunately, we’ve been able to raise funds and continue to get sponsorships so far. Based on that we predict we’ll be able to continue. Nonprofits always have that concern in the back of their heads — will we be able to continue next month and the month after that? That’s the reality of a nonprofit. But as of now we should be ok for the next six months which is relieving.

How can the community help?

The best way to help is through financial donations. Any money donated helps immediately because it goes directly to buying food. That food arrives in a few days and then goes to people’s homes. It becomes a lifesaving resource.

Some people who come to our pantry say they’ve come to depend on us because of the easy access and the variety and quality of the food they get. They feel the pantry is a safe place to get food for various reasons. We’re just a supplemental resource for most people who come, but for some people we’re the only source of food. So, money is the best and like I said a dollar equals five meals which means even a small donation of five dollars buys a lot of food.

The second-best way to help is to use your network of people you know to let them know about us. We’re looking for more corporate sponsors and are happy to set up a package for their support.

Those are the two best ways: spreading the word and donating money.

Do you have anyone you want to thank?

There are many people to thank. I did not do this alone. I must thank all the volunteers who are spending a lot of their time getting involved. They sacrifice a chunk of time out of their lives. Sundays and Wednesdays every week is a lot of time. And those who come on Thursdays and do the physical work of stocking up.

There are two out of those many our organization owes a huge thank you to. First is Antony A.L. McLetchie, the current superintendent of Rochester School for the Deaf. He has seen the need from day one and supported us. Thanks to RSD’s partnership we could open up sooner and have more access to resources we needed. We will always be indebted to that.

Second is Mitch Gruber. He is the chief impact officer of FoodLink, the food bank we partner with. He is also a Rochester City Councilman and has helped us develop a strong relationship with the food bank.

Those two have been key in the progress of this organization. I really want to thank them.

More Info

To learn more about Rochester Deaf Kitchen or to donate, we recommend checking out its social media and website:

Instagram: @rocdeafkitchen

Facebook: Rochester Deaf Kitchen

Visit the Rochester Deaf Kitchen website