COVID19 Relief Efforts
The economic impact of COVID19 drastically increased the need for food assistance for many people in our community. RG Foods pivoted our programming to better meet the crisis at hand. This project has now come to an end and we have returned to our primary mission to create a local system rooted in justice, but we are proud of the hard work from our staff and volunteers as well as the impact it made in making sure our community was fed during this difficult time.
Our COVID-19 relief program was specifically created to provide fresh produce and shelf-stable items that could make complete healthy meals at home.
Serving Those in Need
With the support of several community partners, RG Foods was able to quickly pivot our regular programming to better address the crisis at hand. Working in tandem with other local food organizations, we formed a unique distribution system to quickly get food to those who need it most.
Households Fed
Between March 25th and May 31, 2021, RG Foods volunteers, staff, board and partner groups have packed and distributed 95,644 bundles of food to 191,288 individuals equaling 1,912,820 lbs of food.
Bridging The Gaps to Food Access
RG Foods operated in this program as a distribution partner to bridge gaps in the food supply chain. As such, we worked as the backbone to order, store, and package food that was then sent to other partner organizations to donate.
We were not directly serving any additional customers at this time but rather provided the logistics for over 20 charitable giving partners. Our work enabled our partner agencies to conveniently pick up and distribute food to people in need.
Our Volunteers
Tulsa is a generous and supportive community. During this time, we saw a huge outpouring of support from people who volunteered their time to move, sort, and package food for their neighbors. We were fortunate to receive over 1,500 hours of service from volunteers since March 25, where volunteers were working hard while also maintaining social distancing and following safety protocols.
Community Partners
Since the beginning of the project, RG Foods worked closely with local faith-based organizations that were distributing food donations. Utilizing volunteers from their congregations, these groups picked up bundles of food weekly to then distribute to people in need. A huge thank you is owed to the following groups. It truly takes a village, and their hard work was critical in accomplishing our mission.
THANK YOU!
Antioch Baptist Church, Carbondale Assembly of God,
First Baptist Church North Tulsa, The Common Good at The Hub,
Iglesia Oeste Asamblea de Dios, Lutheran Church Alvaro,
New Jerusalem Baptist Church,
South Tulsa Community House, Northside Christian Center,
St. Francis Xavier Church, Vernon AME Church,
Knight of Columbus serving St. Catherine of Alexandra Catholic Church,
Lindsey House, Disabled American Vets, and Coffee Bunker,
Pastor Bell serving Damascus Fellowship Church,
Assume Missionary Baptist Church and Shiloh Baptist Church
Local Farmers
With the generous support of the Tulsa Farmers Market, local farmers and TFM vendors are providing fresh and locally grown produce for our grocery donation bags. We love Oklahoma Farmers! They make it possible for us to provide the freshest and healthiest produce to local families in need. Spending food dollars locally supports your neighbors, boosts our local economy and strengthens our food supply network.
Growing Together
We’d also like to thank our partner, Global Gardens! Global Gardens donated all the produce they grew in their teaching gardens to R&G for our hunger relief grocery bundles. This fresh produce went directly to families in need in our community.
Feeding the Mind
RG Foods also partnered with Tulsa Educare to provide picture books alongside groceries in our food donation bundles. Educare generously donated 800 picture books for families in need. True health is about more than just food, which is why we were so happy to facilitate reading and family time through this donation. Thank you, Educare!
Our Food Distributors
Our food distributors, US Foods and Frontier Produce, truly made it possible for us to source the food we needed to help our community!
US Foods put in an unparalleled effort to find us the products that we needed to feed our community. In addition, they provided us with a refrigerated truck, without which we could not function at this expanded capacity.
Frontier Produce is a locally owned distributor and was so generous, donating produce and goods to us to give to the folks who needed it.
“Alone, we can do so little; together, we can do so much.”
