The moment you step through the doors, you feel it—safety, warmth, and belonging. It’s in the big smiles, the enthusiastic hellos, and the small, thoughtful gestures that make everyone feel included. You just know: something extraordinary happens here every single day.
Dr. Kenneth Clark Academy in Dobbs Ferry is a place like no other. As a school serving children with special needs, its student body of around 160 students is met with sincere care and dedication—a service the staff takes to heart.
As you walk deeper into the building, you pass through hallways filled with students who each carry incredible stories—stories of development, growth, and learning at such young ages.
Many of these children come from the New York City boroughs and other areas around Westchester. But no matter where they’re from, one thing is guaranteed: they will have the essentials they need to thrive—whether it’s sports, life skills, or even food. These students will get all they need. Sherril, Celeste, and Jessy make sure of it.
Serving a group with special needs—many of whom are also experiencing food insecurity—these three women put special effort into each one of their students.
One major way they achieve this is through their food pantry.
This pantry is unlike any other, and Sherril and Celeste, who run the pantry, were gracious enough to walk Feeding Westchester employees through the operations.
Our employees were amazed to learn that the ones running the show were the students themselves. They organize the food and participate in a system that fills the “shopping” bags of their fellow classmates.
Jessy, the school’s guidance counselor, describes the impact of this setup:
“It gives them a sense of community… a sense of empathy.”
Through their pantry, students are part of something bigger. And what’s even more beautiful is their eagerness to contribute. Sherril, the school’s social worker, shares:
“They want to help. They’ll come and find us, ‘Miss, it’s time’… they’re really ready and willing to be there for the distribution.”
But the pantry’s impact goes far beyond the walls of the school. As Jessy says:
“Their families depend on this.”
Feeding Westchester is honored to play a role in filling those plates and lunchboxes.
Clark Academy’s pantry has become a space where friendship, family, and community are not only taught—but lived.
Celeste, the school psychologist, compares the pantry’s influence to sitting at a family table: “It gives you that sense of community building, of family—when they are all collaborating. Students with different needs, personalities, and behavioral challenges… they come together, and they’re okay. They can be friends.”
Patience and holistic care are what allow these students to flourish. And none of this would be possible without the deep commitment of the faculty.
Sherril offered a moment that sums up the heart of it all—what she thinks about when the school day ends: “It’s dinner time, and you’re very happy to know that because of your pantry… the students and their families are eating.”
It’s a true team effort. Feeding Westchester provides the food. Jessy, Celeste, and Sherril use it to nourish a brighter future. And together, we all help make our Westchester community stronger.
