Supporting Marginalized Communities

KU Staff Senate D&I Committee

“Anything we can do to help a neighbor, whether that neighbor is next to us or in New York.”

― Glenn Brunkow, Kansas Farm Bureau board member, on KS farmer, Dennis, who mailed a N95 mask to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo

Last week, we hosted a Zoom call featuring leaders from area organizations that provide support and resources for some of our most vulnerable community members. In addition to the disproportionate impacts the COVID-19 pandemic has had on Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, spikes in unemployment and stay at home orders are also putting greater pressure on food banks, creating new challenges for addressing homelessness, and contributing to a global increase in domestic violence.

In order to gain a better understanding and awareness of local impacts, we invited leaders from United Way of Douglas County, Family Promise, Just Food, and The Willow to share a little bit about their organizations, how the pandemic is affecting their work, and how community members can support their efforts. If you were not able to participate on the call live, or want to review the information provided, you can view the recording on our website.

Prior to that event, Just Food Executive Director, Elizabeth Keever, provided some details about their organization and their response to increased needs during the pandemic. You will find excerpts from that communication below, along with links to each of the organizations featured in case you would like to support their efforts to provide food, shelter and safety to Douglas County residents.

We recognize that this group represents just a few of the organizations supporting marginalized communities in Douglas County, and we hope to highlight others in the future. Please contact Jeff Severin at jseverin@ku.edu to share information about additional organizations, resources, and communities you would like to see featured through similar events and a resource list.

How to Support These Organizations:

A Message From Just Food

Excerpts from April 21 Communication

Just Food’s mission is to end hunger in Douglas County by increasing access to healthy foods, reducing barriers to health and well-being, and cultivating self-sufficiency. The agency is the food bank in Douglas County, supplying more than 29 partner agencies with pantry staples and fresh produce at no cost to the agencies. These partner agencies include organizations like the Lawrence Community Shelter, Bert Nash, Lecompton United Methodist Food Pantry, Eudora Food Pantry and the Baldwin Food Pantry. In addition to these partner agencies, Just Food also works with food pantries in 14 area schools, the University of Kansas, Haskell University, a mobile food pantry, and at Heartland Community Health Center. Just Food and its partners play a key role in fighting hunger in our community by increasing the availability of a variety of nutritious foods while helping to reduce waste and discarded food. Food distributed is provided by donations from community food drives (13%), by food recovery from local grocery stores, restaurants and farmers (68%), and by food purchased by Just Food (18%). Food purchases supplement the pantries’ most-needed items, such as fresh produce and basic non-perishables (cereal, peanut butter, etc.). At its pantries, Just Food serves Douglas County residents whose income is
within 185% of the federal poverty level. In 2019, Just Food distributed over 1.2 million pounds of fresh and healthy food in Douglas County.

During all times of the year food is a basic necessity and especially in times of economic uncertainty, people look towards agencies such as Just Food to fulfill this important need. Unfortunately, the need is greater now more than ever. In the state of Kansas, over 130,000 residents have filed for unemployment. Communities like Lawrence and Douglas County are hit hard with unemployment due to the large number of service industry jobs in the area. In order to accommodate the increased demand for food throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Just Food’s food ordering has increased by over 400%. Additionally, food donations from individuals and grocery stores have significantly decreased. Just Food purchases food wholesale, but the increased need has created budgetary strain and increased efforts at fundraising in order to address the growing demand.

As a result of the pandemic, Just Food has seen a significant increase in the number of individuals and total visits to the pantry. In the past 4 weeks, Just Food has served over 6,500 curbside pickups and deliveries, and 49% of the individuals who have received food assistance have never needed assistance before. Just Food is truly the first line of defense for individuals experiencing difficult circumstances. In addition to its twice a week curbside pickup service, Just Food has expanded services and now offers home delivery to individuals all across Douglas County for the first time in the organization’s history. Additionally, Just Food maintains food distribution to its partner agencies including Salvation Army, Eudora Food Pantry, Lecompton Food Pantry and the Lawrence Community Shelter to help supplement their food supply during this time.

For more on Just Food’s response related to COVID-19, view this video.