CommUNITY through Coronavirus
While we love to come together with other Ithacans for a good cause, we have decided to cancel our Helpy Hour to Benefit The Advocacy Center this Saturday, due to growing concerns about the Coronavirus. We’re passionate about keeping our community safe and healthy, and right now we feel that the best plan is to lay low, stay home, and keep washing those hands.
We plan to reschedule the event in a few months, so please sign up for our email newsletter to be notified of the new date: http://eepurl.com/gUkNIH
HAVE ITEMS FOR THE ADVOCACY CENTER?
If you have purchased items for The Advocacy Center, you can drop them off in the Community Room at Jillian’s Drawers (look for a box by the door with the Ithaca.Community poster on it) or you can contact us to arrange another drop-off or pickup.
LET’S HELP FOODNET CLOSE THE GAP
At our Helpy Hour, we were planning on making cards to send with Foodnet’s Meals on Wheels program to members of our community who are not able to easily leave their homes. As an added bummer, Foodnet had to cancel their largest fundraiser of the year, the Mac & Cheese Bowl, due to the Coronavirus. Meals on Wheels is an essential and important service for many of our most vulnerable community members, and the cancellation of that fundraising event will have a huge impact on Foodnet’s budget. Please consider donating to help close the gap in their fundraising goal! https://www.givegab.com/campaigns/CloseTheGap
HOW ELSE CAN YOU HELP?
If you are looking for ways to get involved and help out during this time, here are a few ideas:
- Volunteer at a Local Food Bank:
Many food bank volunteers are elderly, and may choose to self-isolate. Food banks need many hands on deck to get food to people who need it right now. We got this message from the Food Bank of the Southern Tier: We do have a shortage of volunteers right now and could use your help! You can sign up for shifts at www.foodbankst.org/volunteer - Support local small businesses:
The Cornoavirus (and cancellations & closings) will have a major economic impact on our small businesses. If you can, shop local, buy gift cards, and do what you can to help keep our small businesses afloat through this. - Remember your community:
Even if you’re practicing social distancing right now, it’s important to stay together as a community. Check on your neighbors & see if everyone has everything they need. You can drop off food or supplies on the porch if you don’t want to go in. If schools or childcare facilities close, see if you can offer childcare support to those who need to go to work. Call your friends and check in.The Coronavirus is exposing some ugly truths about our society’s social safety net. Not everyone can afford to take time off work, stock up on supplies, find last-minute childcare, or pay expensive medical bills. This will be an extremely tough time for those around us who live paycheck-to-paycheck. If you have the means to make extra food, donate items on the Ithaca Families Gift Economy, make donations to local charities who are on the ground helping families, provide childcare, or help in other ways, now is the time to do it!
Follow these pages for the latest in community, state, and national information regarding the Coronavirus:
Ithaca City School District: https://www.ithacacityschools.org/coronavirus
Tompkins County Health Department: http://tompkinscountyny.gov/health/factsheets/coronavirus
NY State Department of Health: https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/coronavirus/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
World Health Organization: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
