Fox Chapel couple share volunteer duties for weekly foodshare outreach in Sharpsburg
A retired couple from Fox Chapel are committed to providing food assistance to residents living in Sharpsburg who often face food challenges living in a food desert, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture defines as a low-income geographic area with a large share of residents who don’t have access to a large grocery store or supermarket.
The closest grocery store is a Giant Eagle Market District about 2 miles away in Waterworks Plaza.
Peggy and Bill Mooney drive every Sunday morning from Fox Chapel to Second Harvest Community Thrift Store in Sharpsburg, and then to Trader Joe’s in East Liberty.
At Trader Joe’s, they load up boxes and boxes of donated food and pharmacy items and return to Second Harvest for same-day distribution to anyone who shows up.
Bill, 73, is the van driver and heavy lifter.
The couple have handled delivery duties for Second Harvest since 2023.
Second Harvest operates a 24/7 Community Free Fridge outreach complete with an outdoor full-size refrigerator, freezer and pantry area, stocked with perishable and nonperishable donated food items available to those who need them.
“The food gets taken so quickly,” Peggy noted. “Some residents tell me they can have a healthy diet. They come up to us and tell me they wouldn’t be alive without the food provided here. Trader Joe’s donates a lot of healthy foods.”
Folks line up early for the first-come, first-served food distribution every Sunday.
“There’s a long line, and people show up in line before we even get here to get the truck,” Bill Mooney said.
Peggy, 72, also volunteers in the retail store at Second Harvest.
The couple have called Fox Chapel home for 30-plus years. They met on the job as bank examiners at the corner of Hollywood and Vine at a bank in California.
“Our first date, Bill said he’d never leave California and battle the elements,” said Peggy.
The Mooneys have been married for 48 years and have two adult children and four grandchildren.
Peggy Mooney noted her life of volunteering from California to Fox Chapel, with Connecticut and Oregon in between, has been a perfect introduction to a new location, and it is rewarding to give back.
For Peggy Mooney, volunteering comes naturally because her mother was a dedicated volunteer.
“My parents taught me that volunteerism is very important to do,” Peggy Mooney said. “The first time Bill joined me volunteering was when I was a docent on a whale-watching trip. It was really fun. That was 1977.”
But Pittsburgh has weaved its way geographically throughout their marriage, despite Peggy’s late mother declaring any location would be OK for a move, other than Pittsburgh.
”I told Bill he had to tell my mother we were moving to Pittsburgh,” Peggy joked.
Business acquaintances and friends recommended the Fox Chapel area, and the couple fell in love with the wooded, residential community and nationally recognized schools.
“When my mother came out to Pittsburgh, she was blown away (by the city), and my California friends moved here,” Peggy said.
The Mooneys, members of Anglican Christ Church in Fox Chapel, replaced their regular Sunday church service with food volunteering activities.
“Initially, we said no to this because of church, but we talked to the church and this is our ministry now,” Peggy Mooney said.
Bill Mooney noted his wife’s dedication to volunteerism.
“She’s volunteered everywhere,” he said.
Some of the food recipients don’t have ovens, so the Mooneys make sure to look for frozen cooked items that can be set aside for certain people, to assist everyone as much as possible.
“It’s very rewarding, and this is 100% hands-on and Trader Joe’s should have a shout-out. They’re so helpful,” Peggy Mooney said. “It’s a great way to learn a community and make friends. I made my career volunteering as we moved around instead of having a professional job.”
Second Harvest founder and Executive Director Bonnie DeMotte described the Mooneys’ avid volunteerism as a tremendous blessing.
“Rain, snow, hail — they’re there regardless every Sunday,” DeMotte said. “Our food distribution system would not be possible without Peggy and Bill. They’re so dedicated to making sure our neighbors have access to healthy food.”
Last year, the couple distributed more than $150,000 worth of food through the Traders Joe’s Neighborhood Shares program.
Additionally, Peggy makes weekly trips back and forth from Lauri Ann West Community Center in O’Hara, a drop-off location for donated foods, delivering the goods to Second Harvest.
When not volunteering, the Mooneys enjoy golf and tennis and are members of the Fox Chapel Golf Club.
Joyce Hanz is a native of Charleston, S.C. and is a features reporter covering the Pittsburgh region. She majored in media arts and graduated from the University of South Carolina. She can be reached at jhanz@triblive.com
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