Grants will help South County residents with food, housing

Three South County nonprofits are among 19 organizations across the state will be able to help RI’ers with food, rent, utilities and other expenses thanks to $1 million in the latest round of grants from the COVID-19 Response Fund at the Rhode Island Foundation.

“Rhode Islanders are struggling to afford basic necessities. These grants will help backbone community service organizations around the state fill the gaps as people deal with having even fewer resources,” said Neil D. Steinberg, president and CEO of the Foundation. “We are so grateful to the donors who have stepped up throughout the pandemic. We will continue to connect with charitable Rhode Islanders to support the nonprofit organizations on the frontlines of providing critical community services.”

The Jonnycake Center of Hope will re-stock its food pantry and support its food distribution network. The organization serves South Kingstown, Narragansett and the indigenous communities in particular.

“Food insecurity continues to be a dominant challenge as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our entire community faces so much uncertainty. Many of our neighbors are confronting hunger and hardship for the first time. With skyrocketing food prices, the pantry is struggling to keep enough food (particularly dairy, eggs, protein to meet demand,” said Kate Brewster, executive director.

“The Jonnycake Center has been on the front lines of the public health crisis providing food, financial assistance, and other basic needs. Since schools closed in March, we served more than 30,000 school vacation meals and provided more than 150,000 pounds of food to hundreds of households,” she said.

Commercial Fisheries of Rhode Island in South Kingstown will buy local seafood at below-market rates and provide it to food pantries, meal sites and restaurants that agree to offer complementary pick-up meals to Rhode Islanders in need. The pilot project was developed in partnership with the state Food Policy Council and the state Department of Environmental Management.

"The project will supply fresh, healthy food to people who cannot afford to put protein on their plates while at the same time supporting the state's fishing and hospitality industries. We expect to provide approximately 9,000 pounds of raw fish or 3,500 prepared meals to neighbors in need. It's one of those rare win-win-win initiatives," said Fred Mattera, executive director.

In addition, the organization will use a portion of its grant to continue working collaboratively with the state and other entities to support the fishing industry during the COVID-19 crisis. This part of the project would serve approximately 1,000 fishing community members.

"The work will include addressing health and safety concerns on fishing vessels; ensuring adequate health care coverage by helping fishermen enroll in insurance plans; devising logistics for direct sales of seafood to the public; advocating for deferral of berthing and leasing fees in state-run ports as well as private mortgages, business loans and lines of credit; adjusting fisheries management regulations to accommodate changing market realities; and providing information to every business in the fleet and shoreside regarding federal financial assistance," said Mattera.

The Tri-County Community Action Program, which serves Narragansett, South Kingstown, Charlestown, Hopkinton and Richmond; will distribute grocery store gift cards and vouchers good at local retailers, provide funding for items not traditionally covered by state or federal support program such as eye glasses, over-the-counter medications and personal care items ; provide emergency housing assistance and purchase hard to find items such as toilet paper, hand soap, paper towels, hand sanitizer and antiseptic wipes to distribute to elderly residents who are sheltering in place.

"Many clients have lost all or part of their income due to layoffs and closures. This has disproportionately affected low-wage workers and the elderly, who often rely on family to supplement their fixed income," said Joe DeSantis, executive director.

"Clients are not likely to have savings to help close the gap between their normal weekly wage and the partial wage paid by unemployment. Because this crisis is affecting everyone, our low-income and elderly clients cannot 'band together' or rely on friends and relatives as they often do in these types of lost-income situations," he said.

With this round of grants, the COVID-19 Response Fund at the Foundation has raised and awarded approximately $7 million since March 27 focused on those most vulnerable to the impact of the pandemic. The grants ranged from $10,000 to $75,000.