December Holiday Food Distribution Event with the City of Burbank Provided Healthy Food Boxes via Socially Distanced Drive Through Pick up and Home Delivery as Millions of LA Residents Face Food Insecurity
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to surge and impact our communities, the need for social determinants of health (SDOH) resources, including healthy food, is critical and growing. In fact, the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank found that approximately two million LA residents currently face barriers to buying nutritious foods. This holiday season, Wider Circle and Optum have further expanded their efforts to provide immediate access to healthy food in Los Angeles (LA) County with a December 7 holiday food distribution event coordinated with the City of Burbank.
The December 7 food distribution event at the Joslyn Adult Center in Burbank brought together Optum employees, Wider Circle representatives and Helping Hands Community’s logistics network to distribute food boxes to several hundred individuals and families from the local area. Distributing more than 25,000 healthy meals to individuals and families facing food insecurity, the events this month underscore both Wider Circle and Optum’s commitments to address SDOH to enable patients to live healthier lives.
Wider Circle worked with the City of Burbank to coordinate the event, which offered free healthy food boxes to residents via socially distanced drive through pick up or home delivery – with each box containing a 10-day supply of food.
As one of the nation’s leading organizations fighting social isolation, Wider Circle has continued to extend its trusted community care model to provide critical social support for vulnerable Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic. By partnering with health plans and provider groups like Optum, Wider Circle has brought resources and expertise to neighborhood communities via a full suite of programs proven to improve the physical and emotional health of seniors sheltering in place due to COVID-19. Helping LA area residents at a hyper local level, particularly vulnerable or older adults, is core to Wider Circle’s mission. During this challenging holiday season, Wider Circle is focused on identifying those who may be socially isolated and facing food insecurity and ensuring they receive support.
Wider Circle extends its sincerest gratitude to Optum for their generous meal donations and to Helping Hands Community and the City of Burbank for making this event possible. Together, we can help alleviate food insecurity in our neighborhoods and keep neighbors safe during this challenging time.
