South Bay churches, businesses step up to provide resources during COVID-19 pandemic

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- With more Bay Area residents hungry and seeking help amid job losses, food banks and community groups are stepping up to offer a little bit of hope.

ABC7 News visited Cathedral of Faith in San Jose during its weekly drive-thru style food distribution Thursday morning, which provided a glimpse of the dire need for help in our community.

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"We've really called our church to be all hands on deck for this," said Pastor Kenny Foreman. "We're going to be here for the long haul, until we get to the other side and then beyond, serving our community."

From SKY7, we saw hundreds of drivers lined up, patiently waiting their turn for pick-up. The church is part of Second Harvest of Silicon Valley's network of 300 non-profit partners in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.

"We have so many people feeling so much anxiety right now and so many people finding themselves for the first time in need of help," said Second Harvest Chief Executive Officer Leslie Bacho.

Across town at the San Jose Armory, real estate developer Urban Community has brought together a network of business and community leaders to help form a new non-profit called San Jose Ship Kits.

"There's a lot of good people out there that really want to make a difference and we've gotten a lot of volunteers," said Tin Le, a SJSK volunteer and co-owner of SP2 Communal Bar and Restaurant. "We've gotten over $100,000 in donations already in the first two weeks."

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The group is now distributing free medical, food, and wellness supply kits to young families and hourly workers impacted by the shelter-in-place mandate.

"They're really going through it and to be able to offer this assistance is truly, truly inspiring for us," said Ashley Pourroy, Urban Community's community development manager.

Project leaders hope to expand their distribution sites in the weeks to come.

"With the small businesses and the average person on the street calling us, emailing us... wanting to get involved is really a great thing to see, so I'm caught off guard and really happy to be a part of that, even if it's just a little bit," Non Plus Ultra client engagement manager Ryan Melchiano.

To volunteer with the group or to request supply kits, visit www.sjshipkits.com.

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