MICHIGAN CITY — When COVID-19 descended upon La Porte County in 2020, providing basic needs, like food, became a top priority; and in the time since, inflation has caused a sharp rise in food prices, keeping hunger a huge issue.
Food insecurity is defined as the condition of not having access to sufficient food, or food of an adequate quality, to meet one’s basic needs. La Porte County’s Food Insecurity Rate of 13.1 percent in 2020 was projected to rise dramatically due to food shortages and other issues created by COVID-19.
The Food Bank of Northern Indiana stepped up to increase public giveaways of food through its mobile pantries, but the need was so great that much more assistance was required.
In the spring of 2020, Kris Pate, president of the United Way of La Porte County, contacted Jim Musial, executive director of Citizens Concerned for the Homeless, to inquire if the nutritional needs of county residents were being fully met.
“In March 2020, our local United Way began to partner with other local funding organizations and service providers to determine how we could best support people in our county as the pandemic began to unfold,” Pate said.
“Ensuring that basic needs were met was top on the priorities list. CCH had been a longstanding partner and was experienced in successfully managing food giveaways. As we began raising funds specifically for food needs, CCH was the obvious choice to help us make the most impact with financial donations for food.”
Pate said the program has two priorities – mobile food distributions must be conducted throughout La Porte County; and, in addition to non-perishable items, United Way events would feature fresh fruits and vegetables.
“Health-promoting foods, not just empty calories to stave off hunger, was the goal,” she said.
Today, La Porte County’s Food Insecurity Rate has dropped from 13.1 percent to 11.5 percent, thanks in part to United Way’s efforts to raise funds for continuing mobile food distribution events, the organization said.
Since its first event in November 2020, there have been 30 United Way food giveaways in total, with the final one under the current cycle scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 18, from 10 a.m. to noon at Marquette Mall in Michigan City.
These 30 events have helped supplement the food needs of nearly 9,000 La Porte County families – over 27,000 individuals – through the distribution of 259,173 pounds of food, all free to county communities, Musial said.
“CCH’s partnership with United Way over the past three years has had a substantial impact on families in need of food, especially over the past year with rocketing food prices,” he said.
“This program and partnership could not have been more successful. The United Way mobile food distribution events were highly publicized in this newspaper, on both radio stations and on social media.”
CCH has also secured future grant funding through the Health Issues and Challenges Grant program from the Indiana Department of Health, which will bring at least 10 additional mobile food distribution events to La Porte County in the coming months, beginning Nov. 1 in Rolling Prairie.
“It has been an honor and privilege to have worked side by side with United Way over the past three years, serving the needs of La Porte County during these most difficult times,” Musial said.
“We all owe United Way a debt of gratitude. Finally, we wish to thank the Food Bank of Northern Indiana, which coordinated the purchase and delivery of this food to every event, and the Morgan Family Foundation for substantial financial contributions.”
“We are incredibly thankful for the commitment and partnership of the many individuals and organizations within our community over the past three years,” Pate said.
“We believe this is what it means to ‘Live United.’”
