Empty Lot Transforms Into Community Fridge, Library In Bed-Stuy

BED-STUY, BROOKLYN — If you ask Paula Andrea — the woman behind a new community fridge set up on Lexington Avenue — the spirit of a communal space at the vacant lot was always there.

It just needed a little love.

The Bed-Stuy resident had watched as the former church, which once ran a food pantry of its own, carried on as a makeshift donation site even after the church had to close. People would leave contributions on a small, grey card table set up outside the brick building's garage doors.

But even though it survived year after year, the spot was far from a perfect system.

"I've watched the small food donations become contaminated by rats or go bad because of the weather," Andrea said.

So, when Andrea became inspired to bring a community fridge to her neighborhood earlier this summer after seeing a similar initiative in Bushwick, the 747 Lexington Ave. lot seemed like the perfect spot.

And it seemed her community agreed.

After getting the OK from her block association and the building's owners, Andrea raised $3,000 for the initiative in just three days through a GoFundMe.

Soon, a local gallery had pitched in supplies to spruce up the space, a grocery delivery company agreed to donate food and someone on Craig's List gave Andrea their fridge for free, plus a $100 donation.

Neighbors and friends from as far as New Jersey stepped up to help Andrea pick up the fridge, paint the graffiti-covered doors and build out the colorful community space.

One neighbor even answered Andrea's call for power tools to build a library box by putting the entire thing together on his own.

"This whole initiative came to fruition because of people who communicated and genuinely wanted to help one another," Andrea said. "It was really amazing to see people care."

The sense of community was especially touching, Andrea said, given her personal motivation behind the community fridge.

Growing up with a single mom who had immigrated from Colombia, food pantries had always been a lifeline for Andrea and her family, she said.

But just like in her childhood, Andrea noticed how local pantries were struggling to keep up, especially under the strain of the coronavirus pandemic.

"Sadly, the pantry would run out of food quickly or we couldn't make the hours, I realized I was witnessing this loop again at the local pantry," she said.

The fridge, Andrea hopes, can become a 24-hour resource for those that are still struggling with food insecurity, or the stigma associated with it.

The "take what you need, give what you can" fridge is already stocked with dry goods as Andrea searches for a power source to begin adding perishable items.

She is working with a company to bring soap, sanitizer and women's hygiene products to the space.

Superchief Gallery, who donated the paint, is helping her look for artists to create a mural on the garage doors, Andrea said.

"Ultimately, I would like to create relief, even if [it's] small, for the people in my community affected by the pandemic," Andrea said. "I believe in the power of community, communication, and kindness. It will make things happen faster than anything."