Written by Jan Nigro, September 2025 Gretchen Rymarchyk is from Lafayette NY and came to Ithaca for grad school. She has a Bachelor’s in Psychology and Master’s in social work and a PhD in policy analysis & planning. She’s also taught, and done a lot of social work in the community here. She retired from […]
By Jan Nigro, 2025 When I first joined FDN several years ago, Art Pearce was the first person to help me learn the ropes. I didn’t know at the time that he had been involved with FDN for many years. “In 2009, Sara Pines approached me and several others explaining that she needed help figuring […]
Written by Rosie Bostian, April 2025 Alicia Menduni, an Environmental Science major and Assistant Manager for the Ithaca College Eco Reps, has played a key role in expanding the college’s food recovery program. While working at the Campus Center dining hall, Alicia recognized the opportunity to launch a food recovery initiative. As she gained a […]
By Elena Flash, November 2024 Riding along with volunteer Vicki John on Wednesday afternoons provides a taste of the full circle impact of Friendship Donations Network (FDN). Vicki, a lifelong Ithacan, became an FDN volunteer about 9 years ago. Around then, the Statler’s head chef, Kris Escalante, was beginning to connect with FDN based on […]
By Elena Flash, September 2023 Mike is a lifelong Ithacan with a passion for building community. Mike, one of 8 children, grew up in a household committed to social justice and community service. He followed his family heritage devoting his 40 year career to human service and nonprofit management. Mike also served Tompkins County as […]
