Volunteer Spotlight: Paul Browne

Ask Paul Browne. This former food service manager, one of our longest serving volunteers, has ordered about 6,500 pounds of food weekly from our largest supplier — The Greater Boston Food Bank — for the past decade. 

And until a year ago, the 76-year-old Browne did the back-breaking work, along with a fellow volunteer, of loading and stacking heavy boxes of food from The Greater Boston Food Bank’s distribution center into a rented truck which he drove.

“I didn’t have to go to the gym,” he joked. Fortunately, there were volunteers who did the unloading when the truck returned to the Newton Food Pantry. Today, a private delivery service (paid for by the Newton Food Pantry) and The Greater Boston Food Bank alternate weekly deliveries.

The process, Browne explained, begins when either he or fellow volunteer Jonathan Lilienfeld (they alternate weeks) work with Denise Daniels, the Newton Food Pantry’s Pantry Manager, in identifying the needs for the following week based on current inventory and expected numbers of clients for the upcoming week. Browne rises early on Wednesday mornings to call in the order at 6am.   

“We place our online order as early as possible because there are things like fresh eggs, milk, meat and fresh produce that are very popular, and we want to make sure that we’re able to get our highest priority items,” he said.

Then, throughout the day, he checks on-line every few hours to see if any new items have come in that he may want to add to the shopping list. “We have a lot of people to feed — about 300 households per week,” Browne said.

Dealing with ordering food comes naturally to Browne, the father of three children and grandfather of four. Prior to his retirement a decade ago, he spent his entire career in food management, including 20 years as administrative manager for Beth Israel Hospital’s Food and Nutrition Department, and later director of food services for the Belmont Public Schools.

The longtime Newton resident — Browne moved to Newton Centre 43 years ago — first became interested in the food industry when he was serving in the Navy where he was assigned to food and beverage services, often preparing meals for visiting VIPs, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

After retiring, Browne realized that lounging around the house was not particularly appealing and decided to look for a volunteer opportunity. He found it with the Newton Food Pantry. It has been the proverbial “match made in heaven.”     

When he isn’t volunteering the 10–12 hours he regularly gives the Newton Food Pantry each week, he can often be found assisting with food preparation at the Newton Senior Center or preparing lunches at the Grace Chapel in Watertown.