Also see: Special Editions of VirtualCAP RoundUP
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Community Action Agencies Taking ACTION in Response to COVID-19, April 10
Brighten Your Days! Helpful Medicine for a Difficult Time, March 26
Today's featured items
- Service Delivery Using Drive-Through Access & Enclosed Office Suites
- Telephone Appointments to Help Fill Out the 2020 Census
- Financial Fitness Events using Facebook Live
- Drop-In Center Continues Services to the Homeless
- Three Types of Support for Food & Nutrition Assistance
- Also see: Featured items listed and link to the 4/16 blog
Capitol Federal and Community Action open pop-up care station (inc. video)
WIBW - Topeka, KS – Capitol Federal and local non-profit Community Action have opened a means for struggling Topeka families to access vital economic and basic necessities while limiting direct, person-to-person contact.
The "CapFed Community Care Station" opened April 8. It provides four lanes of drive-up service for completing social service applications, a secure area to safely transfer food and care packages and private, disinfected office suites for computer-related functions…The CapFed Community Care Station will be open during these hours [Monday – Saturday]…
Brief stories of people seeking help and contributing to the Care Station
Huggy Heart Moments at the CapFed® Community Care Station
Census 2020
Community Action Partnership
Officials concerned COVID-19 may impact Census participation numbers
Eastern Arizona Courier - Safford, AZ – Yes, the United States and the rest of the world is caught up in the COVID-19 crisis, but government officials don’t want people to lose sight of the importance of the 2020 Census…
The Willcox Southeastern Arizona Community Action Program office is scheduling appointments 15 minutes apart so individuals can fill out the census form online with assistance and receive assistance from Spanish translators...
Learn more including some local strategies to build 2020 Census participation
- COVID 19 Impact on Census, Community Action Partnership
- It’s the Official Start to the 2020 Census. But No One Counted On a Pandemic.
The New York Times – …severe virus-related limitations on mobility and personal contact have completely upended a decade of planning how to accurately count those who do not reply on their own and particularly difficult to reach portions of the population…
Schedule of Events
NMCAA
How to Prepare for Financial Emergencies: Facebook Live with NMCAA (inc. video)
9&10 News - Cadillac, MI – The Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency building is closed to the public, but they are still working to serve their community. Wednesday they will hold a Facebook Live event. They will be talking about how to financially prepare for an emergency and what to do if there is one. Dan Tincknell, HUD Certified Housing and budget coach, says they will also be taking questions…
NMCAA Financial Fitness Series, Facebook Live
- Emergency Preparedness (April 8)
- The A-Zs of Your Economic Impact Payment (April 15)
- Developing Your Spending Plan (April 22)
Haverhill drop-in center vows to stay open for homeless
Eagle-Tribune - North Andover, MA – Whether it's for food, clothing, personal hygiene products or hearing a comforting voice, the city's homeless are drawn to Community Action's Drop-In Center...
Drop-in center coordinator Patricia Dennehy is adamant that the center remain open because it is such a scary time for the homeless. She is operating with limited staff including herself, a part-time assistant and three courageous volunteers. The center continues to operate on its normal schedule and is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to noon, although it often opens earlier…
Pullman Serve It Forward
Facebook page
Serve It Forward’ Campaign: Help for Families AND Local Businesses
WSU, Community Action Center support local businesses with 'Serve It Forward ' campaign
KXLY - Spokane, WA – Inspired by WSU Football head coach Nick Rolovich, university faculty and staff are working with the Community Action Center’s ‘Serve It Forward’ campaign.
The campaign purchases gift cards for meals at local restaurants, which are then given to families struggling financially in the COVID-19 pandemic. The Community Action Center’s goal is to provide resources to 80 households in Whitman County, and to support local businesses while they are at it...
Additional new coverage and related information
- Pullman restaurants, nonprofit serving it forward, Moscow-Pullman Daily News
- Serve It Forward, CAC: How It Works and Who is Making This Work
24 Hour Run for CAC
Adventures for the Cure
Runner Tallies 102 Miles in 20 Hours: $12K Raised for CAC Food Bank
Paint Branch math teacher runs 102 miles in 21 hours to support local food bank
The Washington Post – Eight hours and 48 miles into what was supposed to be a 24-hour run, Dan Frank entered his Columbia, Md., home at 2 a.m. last Saturday and crashed on the couch in the living room. Frank runs as a hobby, and about two weeks earlier he set a plan of running for 24 straight hours in support of the Howard County Food Bank during the novel coronavirus pandemic…
Frank fell 3½ hours short of his goal because of injuries resurfacing, but he completed 102 miles in 20½ hours between Friday night on April 3 and the next afternoon, and as of Sunday night he had raised nearly $12,000 for the Community Action Council of Howard County, which runs the food bank there…
More news coverage with video
Howard County man runs for 24 hours for good cause, WBAL
Meal Delivery to Seniors
WCCA Facebook
Using Rural Transit Service to Deliver Meals to Seniors
Buses blazing the trail with meal delivery
Monticello Times - Monticello, MN – Nelson and Gary Ludwig, executive director of Trailblazer Transit, brainstormed on how the transit service could continue to serve the public during the current challenging times...Another was to provide Trailblazer buses to assist Wright County Public Health and Wright County Community Action in delivering meals throughout Wright County...
“We have five buses out delivering meals,” Vetsch said…People sign up for the meals through Wright County Community Action. Participation appeared to be growing on a daily basis. “Monday we delivered 585 meals. We delivered 835 on Tuesday,” Nelson said. “By Wednesday that grew to 1,060 and on Thursday, we were scheduled to deliver 1,285 meals.”
The numbers were growing, Vetsch said, because of word-of-mouth, and marketing by both Wright County Community Action and Wright County public health. Nelson says delivering meals has been a win-win situation for Trailblazer Transit. “We’ve been able to continue to serve the community while keeping our drivers working,” he said.
Related information
Senior (60+) Frozen Meals, WCCA
- Call Center created through community collaboration
- Tech support to facilitate communication with staff
- Child care for medical workers and first responders
- Motels helping shelter the homeless
- CAA produces "Stay at Home" video