PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — COVID-19 cases are swelling by the day, so the Archdiocese of Philadelphia is moving its annual holiday food collection drive online.
Denise Hopkins, administrator of Nutritional Development Services’ Community Food Program, said there aren’t many opportunities for people to make in-person donations of canned goods or non-perishable items because archdiocesan schools have gone virtual, and many people still haven’t returned to weekend Masses at their churches.
Instead, the archdiocese is utilizing YouGiveGoods, an online charitable giving service, to provide donors with another way to meet the needs of their neighbors.
“They’re able to go online and give us a donation of food by purchasing the food items that are listed,” Hopkins explained.
She said the food insecurity crisis is spreading among many households across the region, especially during the pandemic.
“We have seen so many more people in line waiting for food,” Hopkins said. “The lines are longer than ever, unfortunately. My (Community Food Program) driver told me that he actually sees people waiting in line for food who used to be donors.”
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According to Hopkins, the program serves more than 50 food pantries across the five-county region.
“We have 35 food cupboards that we serve each month, and we have about 20 cupboards that we help on an as-needed basis,” she said. “So if they were running low on food or they just have a lot of people in their lines and they need an extra delivery, we’ll go out to them as well.”
For details on the online food drive, visit yougivegoods.com/ndsholidaydrive.