PELHAM BAY, Bronx (PIX11) — The Open Hand Food Pantry has been serving the Bronx community for over a decade, but the doors are currently closed after the founder was taken into ICE custody.
Volunteers say they feed upwards of 8,000 people a month, but now everything is on hold after founder Alex Nilaj was taken into ICE custody and placed at Delaney Hall.
The Board President plans to show up at the pantry Thursday to figure out what to do with all the donated food they have. They have called other pantries to take the food to help people in need.
PIX11 News first met Open Hand volunteers in February 2023.
Organizers needed their delivery van fixed, and a Bronx mechanic stepped in to help, and a local car dealership donated a new one, leaving them with two.
In January 2024, they were running out of food and feared they would have to shut down. They did not have a refrigerator and lost hundreds of dollars of fresh food each day.
Congressman Richie Torres and others stepped in, and the pantry kept running.
In 2025, they were at risk of closing again, this time because they could not pay their bills. The rent and expenses were too high.
Now in October 2026, volunteers say 1,000 people usually show up on Thursdays.
An employee says the Mosholu Montefiore Community Center agreed to take the food while the founder’s ICE custody situation is sorted out.
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