We like this, because it’s about how people can combine their efforts to feed others. That has become a challenge since the global pandemic caused millions of Americans, literally, to find themselves out of work. Food insecurity, the clinical term for not knowing where your next meal is coming from, has become a significant issue in both rural and urban communities. One of the private-sector partnerships that have formed to address it has come into existence in south Florida, where a philanthropic arm of the Ford Motor Company is teaming with areas charities to provide healthy in-home dining for those who otherwise might go hungry. The Ford Motor Company Fund, which supports community wellness and education in more than 50 countries, has joined with Health in the Hood and World Central Kitchen to furnish 5,000 freshly prepared meals to more than 60 families living in areas of Miami-Dade County that have been designated as food deserts. That term describes an area where people have trouble obtaining fresh food because of transportation and shopping limitations where they live, which was true for the part of Vermont that I used to call home.
Any physician will tell you that eating junk food as your basic nourishment, which is common for people who live in food deserts, presents serious health consequences, especially for kids. Ford is donating $25,000 to start the eight-week program, which involves the use of Transit Connect vans to get the meals to people’s homes. Ford volunteers are helping with the deliveries. Another part of the effort, run through Ford’s micromobility business unit, Spin, is planting urban gardens across Dade County. The Ford Fund has earmarked more than $8 million for aid programs in Miami-Dade, most recently involving the distribution of protective masks.
Jim Donnelly On Wheels 