New York diocese urges ‘one day’s worth of food’ donations to feed Palestinians in Gaza

Workers with World Central Kitchen provide a hot meal to children in the central Gaza community of Deir Al-Balah. A new initiative by the Diocese of New York to help feed starving Gazans encourages people to donate to the organization. Photo: Courtesy of World Central Kitchen

[Episcopal News Service] In a July 30 email, New York Bishop Matthew Heyd and Suffragan Bishop Allen K. Shin urged members of the diocese to help starving people in Gaza by donating what they would spend on one day’s worth of food to World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit started in 2010 by chef Jose Andres that provides food to people affected by natural disasters, man-made crises and humanitarian emergencies around the world.

The initiative is called “One Day’s Food for Gaza” and was launched in conjunction with the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine.

“We are all made in the image of God. Our care for each other offers a central expression of our Christian faith. Scripture reminds us to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God. Jesus teaches us to feed the hungry,” the bishops’ email said.

Food security experts backed by the United Nations on July 29 said that “the worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out in Gaza,” noting that widespread starvation, malnutrition and disease are leading to a rise in hunger-related deaths.

During a July 28 “Multifaith Mondays” rally at New York City’s Columbus Circle, Heyd said, “Like you, I’ve been watching with horror what’s happening in Gaza. There are so many complicated things happening. What’s not complicated is that children shouldn’t starve. What’s not complicated is that aid should reach the people who need it, wherever on the planet they need it.”

The One Day’s Food for Gaza effort, he said, allows people to “make a choice for a culture of generosity” every day. While noting that New York Episcopalians already are doing that in their neighborhoods, with the new initiative, “We get the chance to make that choice globally, too.”

In an Aug. 1 post to its website, World Central Kitchen said that while its situation changes rapidly, it can get some ingredients and supplies into Gaza, which its cooks use to provide a limited number of hot meals for families and medical facilities in the central Gaza community of Deir Al-Balah, the only area where it currently can work.

It is also baking bread to distribute in Deir Al-Balah, along with clean drinking water. World Central Kitchen also supports approximately two dozen community kitchens, which prepare meals for vulnerable individuals in their areas using aid supplies from the organization.

Seven members of the World Central Kitchen staff were killed in April 2024 when the convoy in which they were traveling was struck by an explosive device from the Israel Defense Forces near the organization’s Deir al-Balah warehouse. The IDF later said it was “carrying out an in-depth examination at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of this tragic incident.”

Food aid is currently provided primarily through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which is overseen by Israel and backed with millions of dollars from the United States. It operates four military-controlled distribution sites.

On July 1, more than 200 non-governmental organizations said this distribution plan wasn’t getting enough food into Gaza and instead was forcing the people there into “an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families.”

NPR reported that during the last week of July, at least 325 people in Gaza were killed by Israeli forces while trying to reach food, based on reports from Gaza’s Health Ministry.

In response to the growing crisis of malnutrition and starvation in Gaza, Israel’s military in late July said that additional aid would be provided through airdrops. Some European nations have joined a Jordanian-led coalition that has coordinated these aerial deliveries. Still, aid agencies say this is not nearly enough to feed all the Gazans who are suffering without food.

— Melodie Woerman is an Episcopal News Service freelance reporter based in Kansas.