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Thank you to everyone who has contributed so far!
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Dear Community,
I hope you and yours are safe and well. For those of you who are grieving, my heart is with you. As we navigate this painful time, I continue to be inspired and overwhelmed and brought to tears (at least four times a day) by the generosity and beauty of people coming together, caring for each other, and giving in so many ways.
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Kevin Gutting, Daily Hampshire Gazette
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Effective Monday 5/4 our onsite open hours will begin at 12 noon (instead of at 11am). Lunch, produce, bread, and food pantry pick-ups will be available onsite Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 12-3pm.
While a bit counter-intuitive, we are reducing onsite open hours in order to provide more food to more people! As I’ve shared, we have been preparing and serving 50% more lunches than before COVID-19, and over the last two weeks have been running out. Due to social distancing, we can only have a few people in the kitchen or packaging groceries for delivery at any one time. This extra hour will allow us to prepare and serve up to 200 lunches per day, prepare more deliveries for additional families, and we are confident we can still serve the same number of people onsite.
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Groceries for the first delivery to Ware
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We have partnered with area organizations to rapidly scale grocery delivery to area residents. Getting to the Center is really hard for some. Some can’t make it due to their own health risks, others can no longer borrow a car or get a ride, and many no longer have childcare. We expect to deliver groceries to between 400-600 people this month! Organizations such as the Amherst Senior Center and Big Brothers Big Sisters are delivering groceries we package to their clients. And starting last Friday, we are also delivering pre-boxed groceries to area apartment complexes where staff, such as those from Hillside Apartments (Ware) and Wayfinders (Amherst and Hadley), will facilitate doorstep delivery and outdoor distribution. We also offer pre-scheduled curb-side pick-up for individuals in high risk categories for COVID-19.
If you need food, please come. If you can’t get here, please contact us. This crisis is impacting all of us, including many families who are struggling economically in a way they never have. We are here for everyone. We are open. We have food. If you have questions, please reach out. We would be honored to help.
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Kids boost, providing extra groceries to all families with kids
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If you can give, please do. We have been astounded by the generosity all of you have shown so far. It is your gifts that have allowed for the increase in our operations to date. We continue to scale up to provide more food, and trust that this amazing community is in this with us.
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Part of a food pantry monthly shop
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Lastly, a huge thank you to our Mask Makers! We have given out more than 500 masks to participants, and are still collecting and distributing more. Want to sew? Wonderful. See here for more info. And THANK YOU to the amazing sewers for your beautiful, colorful protective gear!
Lev Ben-Ezra, Executive Director
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