Throughout the past few weeks, food insecurity here in Greater Hartford has continued to rise. Since COVID-19 struck our region, Foodshare and our partner programs have seen many new faces standing in line at pantries and at our Mobile Foodshare sites; and our drive-thru distribution at Rentschler Field continues to serve on average over 1500 households per day.
With the increase in demand, we continue to adjust our operations – getting food out to our community and to 200+ partner programs in an efficient and safe manner. We are now heading into the transitional phase of this pandemic, continuing to prioritize the safety and well-being of our staff, our volunteers and the clients we serve.
The Greater Hartford community has shown their passion for our mission and immense support for their neighbors in need. Our corporate and philanthropic partners – and our army of dedicated volunteers – have been key to allowing us to continue to serve this new population of food insecurity… and for that we thank you!
In addition:
In response to the growing need, last month Foodshare provided our community with enough food to make 1.4 million meals, a 30% increase over our usual levels of distribution. Our neighbors accessed this food throughout the Greater Hartford region at partner food pantries, meal programs, Mobile Foodshare sites, and our new drive-thru distributions at the Hartford Regional Market and now Rentschler Field.
Our warehouse in Bloomfield processed more than 2 million pounds in one month for the first time in our history.
Over the past seven weeks the financial burden continues to increase. We are spending over $100,000 additional per week on purchased food and new expenses related to the pandemic.
With the support of the community we have been able to keep our staff, volunteers and community partners safe throughout this crisis. We’ve donated over 1,000 homemade masks, gloves and other supplies to our partner programs. We can still use more handmade masks, please reach out if you are able to donate!
Our SNAP team has submitted a record number of applications in the month of April.
Nearly 60 of our Mobile Foodshare sites continue to run throughout our region, providing a safe and easy way for people to access food. To find a site near you, text FOODSHARE to 85511, call 860-856-4321 or visit www.foodshare.org/mobile.
These are a handful of examples of the ways that we continue to help our community – making sure that no one goes hungry. As we continue operating under this new “normal” I want to thank my amazing team – a group of passionate individuals who are dedicated to the people we serve.
We will continue to keep you posted on our response to this crisis as it unfolds and as we learn more. For up-to-date information please visit our website: www.foodshare.org/coronavirus.
Jason Jakubowski
