HOW WE’RE RESPONDING TO COVID-19
During public health crises like the COVID-19 outbreak, our kids, seniors and working families who struggle to make ends meet on a daily basis are impacted even more by having to choose what’s least costly: spending money on childcare or not going to work so they can stay home to care for their child. Schools are closed which reduces immediate access to meals. Buses are not picking up our kids which means they must find their way to school to eat a meal. Senior congregate meal sites have shut down. Hourly wages are scaled back. Entire industries are seeing a reduction in patrons and lower revenue.
The food and services we provide are more critical than ever before, yet Feeding South Florida is facing unprecedented challenges ourselves, with mass volunteer cancellations, distribution networks shutting down and balancing the safety of our employees with our imperative to serve the community. The global threat is diminishing resources and the rapidly changing closure announcements are requiring ad-hoc innovations to adjust our strategic and tactical response.
As with every response to an emergency, we’re here and ready to serve but Feeding South Florida has not needed the support of the community as much it does today. We need more food, more volunteers, more temporary staff, more sanitation and cleaning supplies and most of all, more funding. Monetary donations give us the most flexibility to respond rapidly to food, logistics, staffing and supply needs.