BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — As a historic blizzard ripped through the City of Buffalo, some took to looting. Buffalo Peacemaker Pastor James Giles said stores that were broken into will likely not reopen for a few weeks, leaving many without grocery stores nearby.
Izel Williams lives near Broadway Street in Buffalo, where several stores were looted.
"That's a huge problem, but I'm not going to worry about it because I have the Lord on my side," Izel Williams, who lives in Buffalo, said.
Buffalo F.A.T.H.E.R.S. and the Buffalo Peacemakers are passing out food to help neighbors living in areas where stores have closed as a result of looting.
"That's a good thing because everybody needs it," Williams said.
"This effort today is our effort to heal the community and provide those hams particularly, and also turkeys, and tons of bread that were in Aldi. They donated it to us," Pastor Giles said.
The food that was distributed today was donated by Aldi on Broadway, one of the stores that was looted.
"And that's Buffalo. That's the real Buffalo at work. That in spite of what you did to me... We have a script that says bless those that curse you," Pastor Giles said.
Pastor Giles said dozens of stores closing, even if it's just temporarily, is worsening food deserts in the city.
"The fallout is going to be that even once everyone gets settled and all the snow is gone, the people in this community they're not going to be able to make it to the store. They're not going to go way out on Union Road to get to the store, way out on Harlem Road just to get to a store just to get little things that they normally would have going around the corner or walking around the corner. Many of these people don't have access to these vehicles. They don't have money to pay for Ubers. They sometimes don't even have money to get on the bus," Pastor Giles said.
Buffalo Fathers and the Peacemakers say they plan to give away food for the coming weeks across the City of Buffalo until stores like Aldi reopen to the public.