Isaac receives prepackaged meals made with fresh ingredients for himself and his three grandchildren.
Isaac comes downstairs from his apartment in Richmond Summit off Broad Street for two reasons: Three of his grandkids are about to pull up, and he wants to get them something to eat.
Outside the apartment complex are volunteers distributing individual prepackaged meals from World Central Kitchen, a global hunger relief organization founded by Chef José Andrés.
Isaac collects his meals and then passes them through the window of a car to three smiling faces. “My grandkids are here a lot, and that’s why I’m down here now,” he says. “This will be a great dinner for them.”
Isaac and his grandchildren are just a few of the thousands of community members in need who have been served by the partnership between Golden Harvest Food Bank, World Central Kitchen, Augusta Mayor Hardie Davis, and volunteer organization Team Rubicon.
This partnership has enabled Golden Harvest to receive and distribute over 225,000 prepackaged meals from World Central Kitchen in our 25-county service area. The meals are created with fresh ingredients by restaurants that are struggling due to the pandemic.
With the help of volunteers from Team Rubicon, the Food Bank has distributed these much-needed meals to our community partner agencies and provided hungry families, seniors and children with the nutrition they need.
The partnership has helped bridge the meal gap as fallout from the pandemic pushes hunger up by 41% in our area and Golden Harvest faces rising food costs, supply chain issues and other challenges.
“This collaboration is an incredible example of what can happen when we harness the power of a community in unison to help those who are most vulnerable,” says Amy Breitmann, Golden Harvest’s Executive Director.
