(Photo courtesy of lou jones | panAFRICAproject.org)
The past few months have been a wild ride for many of us but we’re happy to report that our Food Rescue Program has been staying the course bringing healthy food to those in need.
The biggest challenge for our Food Rescue Program since the COVID crisis hit has been the unpredictability of supply and demand. In mid March, many of our corporate and university food donors shuttered their campuses. Our trucks rushed around town to rescue an influx of fresh food that had been intended for student and corporate dining halls. A few more weeks into the crisis, many of our usual food rescue sources were closed. Heavy demand upon local grocery stores meant fewer food donations for food rescue. Many of the organizations and food pantries that we regularly deliver to were also closed and could not use our deliveries. Despite these changes, our trucks are not idle!
As the COVID crisis grows, there are more people and organizations needing food. Every week, our Food Rescue Program provides much needed food to pantries such as those at the Cambridge Community Center, East End House, Margaret Fuller Neighborhood House, the Revival Church in Chelsea, and the Watertown Food Pantry. These pantries are working hard to serve the needs of the growing number of individuals and families impacted by unemployment, lower wages, and closure of other food programs in the city.
Other organizations are finding their needs changing as they adjust to serve their clients to meet COVID-19 regulations. The Point After Club, a Vinfen Psychiatric Rehabilitation Recovery through Work and Community Clubhouse in Lawrence, contacted us in March asking if we could provide fresh produce to their clubhouse.
“Due to COVID-19 regulations we had to close our clubhouse doors to our members. However, our staff have continued to prepare hot meals available for pick up outside of our club or for delivery for folks unable to make the trip out. Along with the hot meals the Point After Club has been bundling up food pantry items for our community and are now partnering up with other Vinfen ACCS teams as well to provide their clients with meals each day and food pantry items when needed. During these uncertain times, we are so grateful to be able to provide a hot meal and a sense of comfort to our community. At the Point After Club we say that our kitchen is the ‘heart of the clubhouse’ and in these uncertain times, a nice meal can make all the difference in the world. Thank you for your generous donations and for warming our members’ bellies and their hearts,” said Jennifer Lilja, Intake Coordinator Point After Club
If you see our trucks around town, you may spot our drivers now wearing masks and gloves while wiping down boxes and our trucks with sanitizing wipes. While these might be signs of these times, our trucks are continuing to do the same work that we started out doing almost forty years ago: delivering healthy food to those who need it.
