Pandemic shutdowns across the nation have in some cases prevented churches and nonprofit organizations from fully rolling out relief efforts for the homeless, but one local nonprofit is hoping to step up and help fill the gaps.
On Saturday, The Giving Team partnered with Ouachita Behavioral Health and Wellness for the first installment of a monthly event called "Food for Thought" in a vacant parking lot at the intersection of Church Street and Malvern Avenue.
"The whole purpose of 'Food for Thought' is that we don't give out food until the end," Janice Davis, founder of The Giving Team, said.
"We have an assessment -- we ask everyone to fill out to see where they may have gaps in services -- we have clothing, we have people to speak with, and we do feed people.
"Jackson House had some produce that they gave us and we were able to hand out bags of apples, oranges, potatoes, carrots, and onions. We also gave out survival kits that have a watertight zip lock gallon bag with a water bottle, socks, cereal bar, fruit snack, crackers, hand wipes, disposal toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, deodorant, and an information card to assist with housing, medical, dental, and social service assistance," she said.
Davis said around 44 people from the homeless, working poor, disabled, and elderly communities showed up to the event on Saturday, noting she hopes they will have at least 100 people show up next month and that word has spread through the community. The Giving Team plans on holding "Food for Thought" on the last Saturday of each month.
In addition to food, clothing, and hygiene products, they also gave out fabric masks to everyone who came.
"People experiencing homelessness are uniquely vulnerable to contracting COVID-19 and to experiencing harsher effects of the virus. These effects disproportionately impact people of color. 'Food for Thought' would like to implement more resources during our monthly feed/resource program that addresses the most vulnerable population. These resources will be implemented with a racial equity lens to improve health access, health equity, and health awareness. Each of these key pillars of health will create safety measures for homeless people suffering from the difficulty of physical distancing and mitigation efforts that are not available due to inadequate living situations," she said.
The main goal of The Giving Team is to connect the homeless people living in Hot Springs with social service programs, especially during the pandemic, Davis said.
"With a lot of these social service offices closed because of COVID, we are trying to bring the services to the people in need. The focal area for outreach is located on the east side of Hot Springs. The east side corridor is an area central to the city's public transportation hub, poverty, and violence," she said.
Davis says she hopes more social service programs will join The Giving Team in the future so they can provide better access to the homeless during the pandemic. However, whether or not "Food for Thought" grows any larger than what it already is, she says the team will be there "rain or shine."