Our friends and frequent collaborators at Re:Vision Westwood and Lifespan Local have been working hard to support members of the Westwood community during the COVD-19 crisis through their weekly No-Cost Grocery Distribution Program. Residents facing food insecurity can drive up on Wednesday afternoons to collect boxes of food and home goods. With the help of their partners, Re:Vision and Lifespan Local are able to help support hundreds of families each week. And after our great experience volunteering with them in July, we were thrilled to have the opportunity to share the load with a group of volunteers from Salesforce for another distribution day earlier this month.
CI partners and supporters like Salesforce often ask how they can support us with volunteer work, but especially during COVID-19 those opportunities are limited. Fortunately, the no-cost grocery program presented an opportunity for some of our partners to connect and multiply their impact in their communities! Nine intrepid members of the Salesforce team braved the heat (and a looming thunderstorm for most of the afternoon) to sort groceries, pack boxes, direct traffic, and distribute goods to the hundreds of families who came through! Plentiful Gatorade, good teamwork, and brute strength were the keys to a sweaty and successful afternoon.
Working alongside the Promotoras and other volunteers, this super-efficient crew had all the groceries handed out and the tents packed up before the threatening rain started to fall. We know they had a good experience because at least two groups are making plans to go out again in the next few weeks!
One of the Salesforce volunteers, Florencia, shared this about her experience: “As a fellow Latina who has lived in Denver for 7 years, I’ve never actually had the opportunity to participate in the Denver LatinX community, which, unknowingly to me, is only 10 minutes away from my house. It is an honor for me to be able to help. Packing cars and interacting with the families in the Westwood community inspires me to do more.”
We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to make connections between some of our partners and to see new relationships grow out of it. If you are interested in getting involved, food distribution has been extended through the end of the year, and volunteers are needed every Wednesday. Head to Re:Vision’s website to learn more and sign up!
Written by CI Program Manager Andrew Miller
