COVID-19 has left 1.6 million people in Washington state struggling to put food on the table. The need is especially high in parts of Seattle and South King County.
For many communities facing food insecurity, their situation has been made even more challenging with meal and food bank programs impacted by the crisis. A number of food banks have reduced hours or their volunteers are not able to come in to help like they did before. Other programs face shortages of food resources.
This month, we began re-deploying HSD employees to support shifts ranging from food preparation and cooking, to assembling bags and packaging meals, to line management and delivering food directly to vulnerable clients in their homes. We recently gathered photos and reflections from some of their recent work with South Park Senior Center’s senior meal program.
Various city departments including Human Services and the Office of Sustainability & Environment have funded food access and nutrition for older adults and people experiencing homelessness. A grocery voucher program is now helping 9,000 Seattle families. Seattle senior centers are making meals for delivery. And philanthropic organizations, businesses, and nonprofits, like FareStart and Villa Comunitaria, are also assisting in the community-wide effort to battle hunger.
THANK YOU to Seattle Channel for their help with this video, highlighting the community organizations, City staff, and everyone who has stepped up to fight hunger during this public health crisis!
To help the public locate food resources available during this public health emergency, an interactive map has been developed by HSD staff. The map shows the locations of Food Banks, Meals, and Student To-Go Meals. Click here to enter your address or use your device’s location to find the resources closest to you!
If you are in need of help or want more information, please email CovidFoodResponse@Seattle.gov.