VIDEO: We Are in This Together
Since the COVID-19 crisis began, The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB) has been working tirelessly to safely scale up our operation and ensure we are getting as much healthy food as possible into the hands of people in need—the number of which continues to grow as this crisis continues.
In the five weeks from March 19 to April 23, there were over 653,000 new unemployment claims filed in Massachusetts. That is nearly equivalent to the entire population of Boston (695,000) and higher than the number of people who were already living with food insecurity in Massachusetts (estimated at 616,000).
During the month of March, GBFB distributed 8.1 million pounds of healthy food to our partner agencies, a 50 percent increase from the same time last year and the largest one-month total in the 40-year history of the organization.
To meet the growing demand, GBFB Team Members across our entire organization have stepped up to acquire more and distribute more food, and to work with our more than 500 hunger-relief partners across Eastern Massachusetts, such as food pantries, meal programs and emergency shelters, to safely get this food to those in need.
Watch the video above to hear from members of our Food Acquisition, Agency Relations, Community Engagement and Supply Chain and Logistics teams as they share how we’ve been able to keep up with the growing demand. You’ll also hear the director of one of our partner food pantries explain the importance of GBFB to her organization and their ability to feed their clients—many of which are coming to the food pantry for the first time because of this crisis.
We don’t know how long the effects of this pandemic will last, but we do know that we will need the help and support of our entire community to get through it. The biggest impact you can make is by donating your time or donating money. Visit our COVID-19 Response page to learn about volunteer opportunities at GBFB or one of our partner agencies near you. You can help today by donating online.
No one should have to worry about where their next meal is coming from, especially in times of crisis. Help us end hunger here.
