Piermont Resident to Receive Civic Leadership Award

Piermont, N.Y. resident Adele LaTourette will be honored at the Center for Food Action’s 40th Anniversary Gala, to be held Oct. 27 at Seasons in Washington Township, New Jersey.

LaTourette has served as the director of the New Jersey Anti-Hunger Coalition, a program of the Center for Food Action, since its founding in 1980. Since that time, the network has grown from a core group of 30 emergency food providers to include more than 900 food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, social service organizations and advocacy groups.

LaTourette’s leadership has strengthened the network by influencing state and federal officials to support policies and programs aimed at ending hunger in New Jersey and across the country. The coalition’s work helps tens of thousands of people each year to have the food they need to be healthy and productive.

LaTourette will receive the Center for Food Action’s Civic Leadership Award.

“For more than 30 years, Adele has been a leading advocate and voice for hungry children and adults,” said Patricia Espy, director of the Center for Food Action, a non-profit that provides emergency food and other services to northern New Jersey’s poorest and most vulnerable residents. “We are very excited to recognize her dedication and that of our other honorees who all work so hard each and every day to combat hunger.’’

The New Jersey Anti-Hunger Coalition is a program of the Center for Food Action, which will also honor the Bergen Highlands-Ramsey Rotary Club with the Community Impact Award, Deborah & Jeffrey Klein, Distinguished Service Award, and WhyHunger, Philanthropy Partner Award, at the Oct. 27 gala.

Under LaTourette’s leadership, the New Jersey Anti-Hunger Coalition, along with many partners, has achieved significant wins for children and other people facing hunger. The coalition’s advocacy work has resulted in thousands more at-risk students receiving a healthy breakfast at school, more people receiving food assistance through the Supplementary Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), increased access to healthy food in communities and stronger fiscal support for nutrition assistance for children and the elderly.

The Food Tank and James Beard Foundation recently named the coalition on the Good Food Guide list of 1,000 organizations creating a better food system.

“I’m truly honored to receive this warm recognition from the Center for Food Action,” LaTourette said. “It is gratifying to work every day with so many people dedicated to ending hunger in New Jersey and across the nation.’’

LaTourette lives in Piermont with her husband, Bill Kohut, and their dog, Jasper. LaTourette’s daughter, Molly Fagan and her husband, Kevin, are also Piermont residents.

For more information and to purchase tickets to the gala, visit cfanj.org.