There are many helpful pandemic programs popping up in an around the Detroit area.  Community efforts are proving everyone really is in this together.  From offering free or discounted services to donating items in need, Detroiters are helping each other out in a big way.Shoe Pantry Plus, started by board-certified foot surgeon, Dr. Anthony Weinert in Troy, is offering new shoes and socks for those in need.  The non-profit also donated 2,500 pairs of comfortable Crocs to healthcare frontliners working at local hospitals.The Horatio Williams Foundation is providing food to families living in area shelters.  Maxcel Hardy, a celebrated chef and the owner of COOP Caribbean Fusion in downtown Detroit, is one of the chefs helping out.  So far, the foundation has prepared more than 20,000 meals.

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Focus Detroit’s director, Adam Murphy, has set up a food drive to supplement the schools’ efforts. He said, “Throughout the pandemic, what started off as just continuing our food program that we initially had every Saturday, has now grown into a full outreach program where we’re now feeding and tending to over 500 community family members that are in need of food.”Sonia Brown of Detroit who’s better known as “Auntie Na” said she had a $150,000 grant for community nutrition and is using some of that funding to feed people in need during the pandemic.  Auntie Na’s Village is a community center based on the Westside of Detroit that supports the needy all year round, offering free food, shelter, clothing, childcare, and more.  Na’s Pandemic Food Box Delivery Program is the newest addition to her programs.In Detroit, more than fifty agencies in the Homeless Action Network of Detroit are providing shelter, transitional housing, permanent options and street outreach.  The Detroit Area Agency on Aging is providing frozen meals for seniors ages 60 and up.  Those in need can pick up five days of meals every Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. a city recreation centers.Michigan Humane Society’s Pet Pantry program is offering emergency pet food assistance for cats and dogs from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays at 6175 Trumbull Ave in Detroit.  The Pet Pantry is operating via contactless, curbside pick-up with no appointment necessary.The City is also working closely with its thirty-one shelter providers to ensure they have necessary personal protective equipment (PPE).  It has set up a 125-bed facility in partnership with the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries where those experiencing COVID-19 symptoms can be admitted and screened.  Each individual will have his or her own private room while waiting to be screened.  After they are seen, they will either be released to recover at home or taken to the hospital.These are just some of the ways Detroit residents are coming together to show collective solidarity during this difficult time.  More programs will likely follow.“Well truthfully it makes me feel like I’m doing what I’m supposed to do, but the joy comes from where the community and others have come together to make this possible,” Na said.

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Detroiters Helping Detroiters During Coronavirus Pandemic Detroit woman 's food program grows to community outreach during pandemicAuntie Na's Village - Pandemic Food Delivery ProgramCOVID-19 CITY RESOURCES