SUNNYSIDE — When people hear the name of David Oropeza’s restaurant, their first response is nearly always to ask what inspired it. 

Bolivian Llama Party, a small building in bustling Sunnyside with mustard-colored stripes adorning it, is a pure representation of his culture, Oropeza explained with a laugh. People love llamas, an animal native to Bolivia, where his parents immigrated from to New York City in their early 20s. Plus, he expressed in an interview with The Tablet, who doesn’t love a party?

Thanks to his culture and his Catholic upbringing, Oropeza has grown up determined to give back to his community. With the success he and his two brothers have found through Bolivian Llama Party, he knew he could. With over 24,000 followers on Instagram, the Bolivian restaurant has been a staple in Sunnyside for 12 years.

So in December, when Oropeza noticed the long lines of people wrapping around St. Teresa Catholic Church, just two blocks from his restaurant, for the church’s food pantry, he saw an opportunity. Since then, he’s donated thousands of dollars in fresh produce to those in need.

“We wanted to give back, and not with the mentality of receiving something back. But definitely like [to] just do something and just try to help our community. I think that was really important,” Oropeza said.

Since December, Oropeza has given every week to the St. Teresa food pantry. Spending upwards of $400 a week on food donations, Oropeza engineered a deal: for every chicken chicha bowl bought by a restaurant patron, he would donate two pounds of food to the pantry, roughly enough for each recipient family. 

The rising cost of living has forced Oropeza and his brothers to consider stepping away from the food giveaway strategy, but they are continuing to look for ways to give back to St. Teresa; they’re committed to the Sunnyside and Woodside communities.

Oropeza explained that his parents benefited from Catholic Church food pantries more than 30 years ago when they first came to the United States. Because his family received that support when they needed it, he and his brothers want to pay it forward.

“I think since my parents were helped, we found it very important to help and give back. It wouldn’t feel right doing what we’re doing without an element of that because it’s how we got here,” Oropeza said.

A majority of the people who come to the Tuesday food pantry for food are immigrants, mainly from Venezuela and Ecuador, so the food Oropeza brings reflects the culinary preferences of those countries. He says he keeps that in mind on his Tuesday morning trips to pick up from Restaurant Depot in Maspeth.

“When I’m at the store, I’ll buy kidney and black beans, because Mexicans love black beans, but Venezuelans eat kidney beans,” he noted. 

The St. Teresa pantry opens at 4 p.m. every Tuesday, and nearly 300 people line up each week for its services. Many show up hours earlier to secure a place in line. Among them on March 19 was Marcos Santana, who walked 50 minutes to the church from his home in Long Island City.

“I’ve not been working since September. It’s been really hard to find a job, and that’s how I found out about this [pantry]. That’s how I’ve been surviving,” said Santana, who makes a point when he comes to bring any spare clothing to drop into a donation box that sits near the food pantry doors.

Growing up, Oropeza and his two brothers attended Holy Child Jesus Catholic Academy in Richmond Hill, where the Catholic values of charity and human dignity were instilled in them.

“God helped me a lot in my life and I think the best way to show appreciation to God is to help people,” he said.

Donors like Oropeza help keep the pantry alive, said Norberto Saldaña, coordinator of the St. Teresa food pantry since its formation. He also receives food from Catholic Charities Brooklyn & Queens and the city, and with the help of a variety of different sources, he’s been able to keep the pantry going for more than  20 years. 

Saldaña, who also serves as president of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul for the Diocese of Brooklyn, said he was gratified when Oropeza approached him and asked how he could help the food pantry recipients. 

“I see a lot of people here that benefited from [food pantries]. So now, they are giving back,” Saldaña said.

​​For more information on Bolivian Llama Party, head to its website at blp.nyc.