Throughout Appalachia, our fellow citizens in distressed communities struggle to get by even when times are good — and with the current coronavirus pandemic things are certainly far from good.

Among the things these people count on the partners of Americans Helping Americans for are supplemental food to get through the month, relieving them of the stress of having to choose between paying rent, purchasing their prescription medicines, keeping their lights on, or putting food on the table.

For example, in Gainesville, Georgia, Mary Mauricio, executive director of our longtime partner there, LAMP Ministries just reported that instead of having her clients come to their office to pick up food boxes as they had in the past, Mary and her team of volunteers are out and about delivering food boxes to grateful families in the lowest income neighborhoods in the community.

In Cleveland, Georgia, our partner Caring Hands Ministries is doing the same for their most vulnerable elderly clients, providing food, and perhaps equally important, a lifeline to the outside world where Caring Hands volunteers are the only people they can count on in time of need or even emergencies.

And in Welch, West Virginia, one of our newest partners, 5 Loaves & 2 Fishes has expanded its operations with longer hours and its volunteers are bringing the food boxes to the clients’ cars, rather than have them come into the building. With support from Americans Helping Americans these families are able to receive fresh meats, in addition to non-perishable food items and fresh produce.

We commend our partners for their selfless service in these stressful times of great need, and thank our supporters for making this all possible.