Valley View Community Food Bank (VVCFB), headquartered at 10771 West Peoria Avenue in Sun City, is mobilizing to answer as many requests for help as possible. Jesse Ramirez, founder and president of the non-profit organization, says that in one day he received more than 160 calls on his emergency phone from people desperate for assistance. The food bank is seeing as many as 500 clients per day, many of them who have never asked for help before. Food counselors and other agencies are also turning to VVCFB for help. With the sudden cancellation of school, and the shuttering of many businesses for an unknown length of time, many people are scrambling to provide basic survival necessities for children, grandchildren, and themselves. Jesse Ramirez states, ?We are in need of more donations, especially food, personal hygiene items, and cleaning and sanitation supplies.? He explains that the cost of staple food items such as rice and beans ? if these items can even be acquired right now ? have doubled and tripled. So monetary donations to facilitate the purchase of needed resources is extremely helpful. Particularly sought after are such essentials as items to make soup, canned tomatoes, and fresh produce. Grocers are not supplying produce because of the increased volume of buying being experienced now in retail establishments. In addition, volunteers are needed to take the place of regular volunteers who cannot assist in the food bank at this time because of their increased risk of contracting the virus or exposing a vulnerable family member. Volunteers are needed to help prepare food boxes. Volunteers are also needed to deliver boxes to homebound seniors in the Sun Cities. (Deliveries can be made only in the Sun Cities for now.) Jesse Ramirez says, ?All health and safety protocols are being observed, and we are sanitizing three times a day. We have purchased gloves, face masks, and hand sanitizers. We are taking every precaution to keep our volunteers, employees, and clients safe.? He adds, ?In my decades in food banking, I have never seen anything more disturbing. People are crying and are so afraid of the future. We have to find ways to help each other. We are all in this together, and together is the only way to address this historic crisis.? To donate, you can go to www.feedingaz.org. To volunteer to help pack boxes or deliver food in the Sun Cities, call Martha Ovalle, Volunteer Coordinator, at 602-486-4285. For more information, contact Jesse Ramirez at vvcfb@yahoo.com.
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