HIP pivots in a pandemic

by | Nov 19, 2020 | Blog, Participant Stories | 0 comments

In late spring, food banks and community organizations were scrambling to meet increasing needs as impacts from the pandemic spiked. Through a collaboration with the City of Shoreline, HIP learned of residents needing assistance with groceries. HIP was able to pivot and step in to fill the gap. Here are just a few of the stories from people we served.

Alejandra and family grieve a loss

Alejandra Benitez lost her husband, pictured left with his family, just as the pandemic launched, due to a heart attack and diabetes. She has two young children to feed. It was a relief to not have to think about shopping for food since HIP delivered groceries every two weeks. The provisions included items her kids enjoyed, like milk, fruit, yogurt, and beans. In a time of deep grief and worry about the pandemic, she at least knew that her children were eating healthy food.


Linda stays safe at home

Linda McDuffie is 80 years old, has macular degeneration which leads to vision loss, and can no longer drive. She has barely left her house except to work in her yard, which she says has never looked better. Linda exclaimed “I don’t think I would have survived the quarantine without my food deliveries, I would have had to beg, borrow and steal to survive!”

HIP delivered groceries every two weeks to Linda. She appreciated the wide variety of food, including rice, peanut butter, macaroni, tomato sauce, and nuts. She just wished there was a little more fresh fruit.


Stacy can feed the family after job loss

Stacy Barrett lost the extra income she had from her afterschool and summer tutoring programs, which closed due to COVID. She still works as a teacher, but her pay doesn’t stretch far enough to feed her family of six. The four bags of weekly groceries she received was “such a huge help. I like the variety and that there are easy things that the kids can fix, like tuna fish.”

Written by hungerintervention

November 19, 2020

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