Items

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  2020-09

  Socially Separated Sandwiches

  During the fall of 2020, a local homeless shelter was unable to offer beds to people in need during the COVID pandemic due to space and resource restrictions. It was hard to witness these organizations meant to help people also need extra love and help during the pandemic whether it be for medical, physical, or financial reasons. In response to the need, my church was able to step up to make sandwiches that the shelter could hand out to the people living on the streets that they were unable to serve at the time. We wore masks, took extra safety precautions, and socially distanced in an assembly style line outside in the church parking lot where we made packages of chips and sandwiches. While working together to make the sandwiches for the homeless shelter, I was reminded that we are still a community even when we cannot be together in the same ways we were before the pandemic. Finding pockets of community in the turbulent pandemic has been a blessing and chance for me to truly appreciate those around me and think of different ways that I can reach out to the community and be a part of it despite the circumstances. Distance did not have to mean silence and stillness. People were able to help in any way possible. If they were unable to help make the sandwiches, they prayed for the mission or donated money for the supplies. People shared what they could and came together when it mattered the most. This story highlights how even in times where we stayed apart to remain safe, we were still able to come together in another way to support each other. Communities didn't have to disappear during the pandemic, and this is just one example of their power to persevere in dark times.
• 
  2020-05

  Covid, Homelessness, and BLM

  During the spring, I volunteered at the McKenna Center--a homeless shelter on N Capital St in DC. The man to my left in the picture in front of the shelter is a man named Johnny. He his from Bolivia and is the janitor at the center. Last spring I tutored him, and in return he cooked food for me and a few other volunteers to deliver to about 100 people every week. Some of the other photographs are fro the protests around the same time.
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  2020-06-13T06:06:06

  The Hungry During The Corona Pandemic

  Workers from the food bank of lower Fairfield County in Connecticut took this picture This is a photo that I found on CNN of one of the shelves in a food bank. The amount of people that are relying on food banks has drastically changed since the begging of the pandemic to now. From the pandemic, Feeding America predicts that an estimated 1 in every 6 Americans may face hunger due to the conditions. This photo made me think how fortunate my family and I are and how lucky we are that we don’t have to be concerned with where our next meal is coming from. I think that this Is an important photo because it shows how many people are in need of food and are unable to support themselves. since more people are out of jobs because of not being able to come in contact with other people has affected the income of many and the amount they can spend on food.
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  2020-05-10

  Choicelunch Pivots Business Model to Avoid Shutdown

  This is a newspaper article highlighting how a local business adapted to the challenges presented by COVID-19. Choicelunch pivoted from providing lunches to over 250 schools across California to providing contactless grocery pick-up throughout the Bay Area. They have been able to keep their business running and have been able to rehire many employees initially laid-off because of the pandemic. #ASU#HST580