In addition to being among the most vulnerable to severe illness from COVID-19, seniors face additional barriers to receiving essential services and sources of support, including food access and community connection, during this pandemic.
That’s why local leaders have joined together to launch House District 136’s Neighbor to Neighbor Food & Wellness Program – an initiative that helps senior citizens (ages 60 and over) and people of any age with a disability living within western Williamson County’s HD 136 who are homebound or otherwise have urgent food access needs.
In partnership with Leander-based food pantry Hill Country Community Ministries, the program is spearheaded by the offices of HD 136 Rep. John Bucy III and Austin City Council Member Jimmy Flannigan, whose District 6 stretches into HD 136. The goal of the program, Bucy told the Chronicle, is twofold: One, to ensure these at-risk populations receive the emergency food they need; and two, to check in on the district’s senior neighbors. The program aims to accomplish this through weekly food deliveries and regular outreach calls throughout HD 136, which includes much of Northwest Austin, Cedar Park, Leander, and the Brushy Creek area.
At HCCM, volunteers (restricted to ages under 60) assist with food packaging before packages are loaded into volunteers’ cars for a contact-free delivery. Meanwhile, volunteers over age 16 are making outreach calls to seniors – a list that includes some 24,000 phone numbers, by Bucy’s estimate – and prioritizing those who live alone.
So far, over 100 volunteers have signed up to help, with other regional city leaders coming onboard, including Cedar Park Mayor Pro Tem Mel Kirkland and Council Member Anne Duffy. To find recipients whose demographic data may not be available, such as people with disabilities, Bucy said the program is contacting different community organizations and using social media outreach.
Most of the program participants don’t normally rely on a food bank, according to Bucy. However, in light of the pandemic’s economic impact and health risks, seniors are among the many having to look outside of grocery stores to meet their food access needs. Bucy explained, “They’re floating on the edge because of job insecurity at the moment and they’re concerned about going out [because of] health and safety concerns.”
On Friday, March 27, volunteers made the program’s first deliveries to some 35 homes that said they were in immediate need of food. For the people that inform volunteers they either have the financial means to or ability to access food outside a food bank, Bucy said volunteers share other pertinent food services resources, like H-E-B’s newly launched dedicated delivery service for seniors.
Earlier this week, the program doubled its capacity for deliveries; now, it needs more help with making outreach calls to seniors. Speaking to the program’s emphasis on phone calls, Flannigan pointed to communication barriers seniors are already facing online.
“Seniors,” Flannigan said, “are the ones that possibly have the least access to quick turnaround of information online.” And even if seniors are active online, Flannigan added, there are concerns about misinformation. “Are they even getting proper, good information? Or worse, they’re getting bad information being spread by email and we wouldn’t have any way to know that.”
A phone call can also go a long way for someone’s mental health. Seniors, who are already prone to high rates of social isolation, may be further impacted by social distancing mandates. It’s why the program offers regular check-in calls whether or not folks request meal deliveries. “We ask them once we connect if they’re not going to participate in our food program, if they still want follow-up calls so they can stay on our lists and get a call every week or two to check in on them,” said Bucy. “That’s why we call it our food and wellness program.”
Seniors or people with disabilities living in HD 136 who need assistance getting food may sign up online, or contact Rep. Bucy’s District Office at 512/259-1478 or by email at district136.bucy@house.texas.gov. Residents who wish to volunteer can sign up online to help with outreach, food packaging & delivery, and donate needed supplies.
This article appears in April 3 • 2020.