When Life Gives You Lemons Make Lemonade

While the pandemic has brought about a lot of changes that have not been positive, it is wonderful to hear those little stories that are having a great impact. A huge thank you goes out to the Arc of Indiana for sharing a fabulous project that they are a part of during this time. I don’t know about the rest of you but I have found myself eating more of those comfort foods. That is never a good thing for me. Not only does it make my clothes tighter, but I feel sluggish and just not myself. Luckily I have a fantastic farm market just down the road from me that offers a wonderful assortment of fresh fruit and vegetables. That is why I am fascinated by the program that The Arc of Indiana is bringing to the intellectual disability community in Indiana.

Michelle Jordan is the Executive Director of The Arc of Indiana. She recently shared with me the details of the program they are working on to make the lives of those we support healthier. We at the HCQU applaud your efforts!

“As part of the Coronavirus Farm Assistance Program, the USDA is exercising authority under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act)  to purchase and distribute up to $3 billion in agricultural products to those in need.

USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service will purchase an estimated $100 million per month in fresh fruits and vegetables, $100 million per month in a variety of dairy products and $100 million per month in pre-cooked pork and poultry products by partnering with regional and local distributors, whose workforce has been significantly impacted by the closure of many restaurants, hotels, and other food service entities.

These foods will then be distributed to Americans in need of food assistance through a program named the “USDA Farmers to Families Food Box.” This program will benefit both farmers whose sales have been adversely impacted by the temporary closures of many food service entities and those in need of additional food assistance as a result of COVID-19 mitigation efforts.

USDA has issued a solicitation to invite proposals from farmers, food processors, and distributors to supply these commodity boxes, intended for individuals and households, to food banks, community and faith-based organizations, and other non-profits serving Americans in need. USDA will award contracts for the purchase of the agricultural products, the assembly of commodity boxes, and delivery to identified non-profit organizations that can receive, store, and distribute food items. All products contained in the boxes must be of domestic origin.

Center for Independent Living of South Central PA reached out to us and asked if we would like to be a part of this awesome produce distribution and I gratefully say Yes! In a normal year the Arc would be doing active trainings, conferences, expo’s, and advocacy outreach to the Indiana community but due to the pandemic we have proactively decided to think outside of the box. How we can help our high risk individuals who have also been hard hit by COVID-19 and work to meet their needs. This Farm to Families Program has been a great way for us to reach out to the community and bring much needed resources to our individuals. The boxes we are receiving come from Paragon Farms in Pittsburgh PA and are 25-30 pounds of fresh fruit and vegetables. Our hopes are this program will also promote healthy eating habits and wholesome nutrition our individuals continually need. 

We are doing distribution every Wednesday from 10:45 a.m. – 5:00 pm. We will continue to provide distribution until it is no longer needed. In September the Farms will be adding dairy boxes as well. This may need to change to a Friday distribution instead of Wednesday for that particular box.  

We started out with 10 boxes the first week and are up now to 60 boxes. All produce being distributed from The Arc of Indiana is for individuals with intellectual, developmental delays and other disabilities. 

We are located at 120 North 5th Street, Indiana, PA 15701. If anyone is interested in connecting us with those that can use a produce box please contact Michelle Jordan at 724-349-8230 or 814-441-7981, e-mail mjordan@arcindiana.org. I order boxes by Thursday the week before.”

Thank you again Michelle and The Arc of Indiana for thinking outside the proverbial box. What a fabulous opportunity to help people live healthier lives.