How a small community center is tackling big issues in the times of COVID-19.
The coronavirus pandemic has altered the lives of many, both financially and emotionally, especially among marginalized groups in low-income communities. Studies conducted by Pew Research Center and NPR have shown that the economic and mental strain of the pandemic has disproportionately affected the latino and black communities at higher rates compared to their counterparts.
Boroughs like the Bronx, which have a high population of black and latino residents, have seen an increased need for financial assistance since the beginning of the pandemic. Neighborhoods like Kingsbridge Heights, which has already been widely recognized as a low-income community, has seen a massive number of families struggling since March.
The Kingsbridge Heights Community Center has been working over the course of eight months to ensure that families are getting the relief that they need.
William Littelton, the Director of Development at the community center, says the KHCC food pantry, which provides families in need with food supplies and meals, has seen an increased demand in recent months. Their team is working overtime to keep up with the needs of residents..
“We were helping 20 families a week with food through our pantry before COVID, and now we’re serving over 200 families a day, so the need has grown exponentially, and families are really feeling the pinch especially,” Littleton said.
“Before the pandemic, 34% of our participants identified that they don’t have enough food, and then during COVID we surveyed families, and 75% of families have expressed that now.”
In National Geographic’s “New Face of Hunger” article, they reported that urban neighborhoods in the Bronx have less access to food. The South Bronx has the highest rate of food insecurity in the country.
Littleton says that making sure struggling families are receiving substantial meals is their main priority at the moment, and it will continue to be their priority for as long as possible. Although, he says that lack of food is not the only issue plaguing the community.
“In terms of the food pantry, we’re still seeing numbers go up, this is not over by any means and our goal is to make sure our community has enough food on the table to stay healthy,” Littleton said… “64% of our families lost their jobs during the pandemic, so that goes hand and hand with the food insecurity.”
The community center has been providing families not only with meals, but with other resources that can help them financially.
“There was emergency cash assistance available through the city, but not everyone is eligible for it. We work with a large immigrant community and mixed- status families who were not eligible for some of these resources, so we secured funding and continue to provide cash assistance in the form of gift cards,” said Alexandra Martinez, the Director of Adult Services at KHCC.
“More recently in the last couple of months we have been doing a bill relief program, so for families who are struggling to pay for their bills, we help support them with checks to pay for those bills.”
The financial- relief grants are provided through the “KHCC Connect” program.
While the KHCC Connect program has been operating long before the pandemic, it has since adjusted the mission to align with the needs of the community. It provides housing connection, and as of recently began offering virtual classes and webinars to Kingsbridge families to answer all their questions, and provide solutions for their COVID- related issues.
“It took us a while to really figure out how to do workshops presently. Prior to COVID when we were on site, we did have monthly workshops on varying topics,” Martinez said…“At the beginning of COVID, workshops and webinars weren’t a priority, we were really trying to support people with basic needs and so that was what guided our response.”
Some of the virtual webinars include, “ Financial tips in times of COVID-19”, which taught residents how to budget during a pandemic, and “Housing Connect 2.0”, which introduced residents to a new website to help find housing.
Martinez, who has been at KHCC for three years, refers to the program as a “wrap- around model.” They attempt to wrap families in as many services and resources as possible. She stated that sometimes families come to the center looking for one service, but are often unaware of all the other services that they can benefit from.
One of the many services that has been adjusted since the beginning of the pandemic, is KHCC’s “Changing Futures” program, which provides families that are struggling with mental health with free therapy. The program mission is now focused on healing COVID trauma.
Lisette Abreu, the Assistant Director of the Changing Future’s program says a huge bulk of the families that they see on a daily basis, have lost their jobs and homes, and need a platform to talk through their issues.
“We treat any form of trauma and any form of mental health services that the community needs, for absolutely free,” Abreu said. “We dont require any medical, any documents, and we dont ask for social security, so even a lot of the undocumented folks can come and get services with our program.”
In late June, the CDC reported that racial/ethnic minority groups have experienced elevated levels of mental health conditions related to COVID- 19. They suggested prioritizing minorities and increasing intervention and prevention for these groups.
Although the program has gone 90% virtual, Changing Futures still provides families with different forms of therapy remotely. The types of therapy include, art and animal- assisted therapy.
Abreu says that she feels a program like Changing Futures is, and will continue to be a beneficial factor to the community during these times.
“ I think that this type of program is really needed just because we are long-term,” Abreu said. “We have different types of services… It’s one thing to sit with one person in a room and talk to them about their problems, but also engaging them in different activities, is a better relationship to be formed with the client.”
