FROM KIDS' FOOD BASKET PRESIDENT BRIDGET CLARK WHITNEY - March 16th Bridget
Greetings,
These are certainly trying times for all of us. We know that like our team here at Kids’ Food Basket, you are concerned about our communities’ most vulnerable citizens. Our mission is to nourish our children and our community, and because a virus cannot and will not stop hunger, we are committed to continuing to pack and distribute nourishing food in a safe, healthy and responsible way.
Incredible Spirit and Love in West Michigan
First, I would like to say thank you so very much to those of you who have reached out and contributed. We are humbled to report that we have received a massive volunteer response from the West Michigan community in this time of crisis. While a few have scrambled to take cover, many of you have stepped up and asked what you could do—in fact, over 1,100 of you volunteered on our emergency response page! Truly, this reflects the incredible spirit and love here in West Michigan.
This is what we now know—a lot needs to get done, AND we must move forward with a measured and responsible plan of action. After consulting with health care professionals and our local health departments, we have crafted an unprecedented and modified plan to best serve our community and keep our children, volunteers and staff safe.
New Volunteer Information
When this crisis began, we asked for donations of food, monetary resources and volunteer time. Based on how COVID-19 spreads, we then realized that more volunteers is not the answer to this crisis. Therefore, we have modified our request to limiting on-site volunteer opportunities to 2 three-hour shifts per day with a total of 15 volunteers per shift who could commit to that shift all week long. This modification allowed us to pack and distribute a large number of Sack Suppers while limiting exposure to our staff, volunteers and the building.
This week our regional teams will be moving their packing sessions to our Grand Rapids facility so that we can centralize procurement, packing, and initial distribution. We will continue to provide food to all four of the counties that we serve.
Since the announcement, we have been amazed by the outpouring of support and generosity from our community. Thanks to every single person who has reached out to Kids' Food Basket with a kind heart and wiliness to serve our kids. As a result of this amazing response, all of our volunteer shifts are full and we have sufficient backup on standby for the foreseeable future. However, please check our Emergency Response page often, as our needs may change.
More Ways YOU can Make an Impact
We realize that many of you may be a bit disappointed or frustrated if our volunteer needs are not a good fit at this time. We appreciate your understanding, graciousness and commitment to the community. Please know, there is still so much you can do to support our children during this crisis. Monetary resources are critical, and “Text to Give” is very effective and efficient. Text “KFB” to 56651 and know that every one of your dollars will be going toward nourishing our community.
There are also other ways you can support kids and our community right from the safety of your home! Please share our information via social media to help spread the word or decorating brown bags for Sack Suppers is a great family-friendly activity to do that is appreciated.
Bottom line, we still need all of you throughout this crisis. We are tremendously grateful for the outpouring of support and love. Most importantly, we need you and your loved ones to stay healthy because we are going to continue to need you in the future. If you’re determined to volunteer in the community, call 2-1-1. Dial 2-1-1 is a free service that connects residents with help and answers from thousands of health and human services agencies and resources in our community — quickly, easily and confidentially. If you know a family in the community that needs assistance, they should call 2-1-1 too.
Sack Suppers that Students have come to Rely upon
Many of you have asked about our partner organizations during this crisis. We are happy to report that many of our partner schools will be opened for two hours for breakfast and/or lunch. When they are open, we will be there to provide the Sack Suppers that students have come to rely upon. We intend to serve each of our partner schools—based on each school’s capacity to receive and distribute Sack Suppers.
Also, we intend to temporarily distribute to additional high-need schools in our communities based on our capacity to do so and the food resources available.
Lastly, we intend to partner with community organizations that have direct connections to families in need and can receive and distribute our meals. Our ability to do so will be based on human capacity as well as food availability.
I am confident that our emergency response plans will be an effective, efficient and safe way to distribute healthy food to our community during this time of crisis. Your incredible support has made and will continue to make it possible for Kids’ Food Basket to serve our communities’ most vulnerable. Together, we will get through this, and together we will move forward.
To read more about the work being done by Kids’ Food Basket during this time, visit our website at kidsfoodbasket.org.
In the spirit of peace and health,
Bridget Clark Whitney
Kids’ Food Basket President and Founding CEO
