March 25th: Food Bank, Food Pantries, & Anti-hunger Nonprofits

Erin McAleer, President of Project Bread, provides motivation for today's #351GratitudeMoment: “We are also acutely aware that the 1 in 11 households and 1 in 9 children experiencing food insecurity in Massachusetts right now, are disproportionately impacted by the negative consequences of quarantines, unpaid sick leave, lost wages and school closings caused by the coronavirus epidemic. We need to stay focused on our emergency programmatic response to maintain and expand access to food. So now, more than ever, we need the public’s participation to raise funds and ensure residents have enough to eat.”

Project Bread is just one of the remarkable -- and remarkably effective -- leaders in the fight to end hunger across the Commonwealth. As COVID-19 continues to disrupt our economy and lives, the anti-hunger movement has stepped to the fore with innovation, generosity, and Herculean efforts.

The examples of goodness are abundant and in every one of our 351. We draw inspiration from these three examples of love-in-action.

To ensure the health and wellness of their families, Jewish Family and Children Services in Waltham, created a drive-through, minimal-contact Marketplace. Two hundred families received a week's worth of groceries, including Passover food and kosher chicken for families of Jewish faith.

An anticipated 100% increase in the number of families needing support engaged the tireless work of the team at the Sandwich Food Pantry to ensure that no one will go without. Volunteers will provide a month’s worth of groceries, including nonperishable foods; meat, milk, eggs and cheese; and personal hygiene products.

That same spirit of generosity travels to the Berkshires, where the Adams Council on Aging and the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts partner in support of under-served populations without access to healthy foods. They innovated with a mobile food bank that featured an abundance of fresh produce. As testament to the adage, "it takes a village", the market was supported by the Forrest Wardens Department, Select Board Members, Board of Health, Adams/Cheshire School District, North Berkshire Emergency Operations Center, Berkshire Community Action Council, Adams Department of Public Works, staff, and volunteers.

Everywhere we turn, communities unite in support of community. Through this mid-week #351GratitudeMoment, we send our abiding gratitude to the anti-hunger leaders who inspire such unity, compassion, and generosity.