New Haven Independent

Roma helps run the food bank at the 2,000-resident Bella Vista senior complex near the East Haven border. “It’s hard when they’re seniors,” says Roman. “People are on fixed incomes.” She said that some residents are “just barely making it.”

Located in the Bella Vista resident services office, the food bank is stocked with a variety of non-perishable foods: canned vegetables and soups, crackers, pasta, rice, and ready-to-eat meals. The food is available to all residents of Bella Vista; they can take a bagful of groceries when they need it. Although the Bella Vista food bank accepts donations from the general public, most of the food comes from other residents.

With the holidays coming up, Bella Vista’s resident service coordinators expect to see an increased demand on the food bank. On Thanksgiving and Christmas, staff people cook meals using food bank ingredients and deliver them to residents in the community, to people who are alone or unable to leave their homes.

The food bank, which has been in existence for about three years, was started by Jessica Parlato, a resident of Bella Vista who recently passed away. Lynne Mossman (pictured), a resident services coordinator, said that the food bank now serves about 15 to 20 residents per week. She said that this number goes up towards the end of each month.

Food bank use is kept confidential by the staff, who said that some of the residents can be embarrassed about using the service. Some people ask to leave through the back door after picking up their groceries.

The Bella Vista food bank accepts donations of money or non-perishable food items between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the resident services office in building C. You can reach them by phone at 469-6413.