GROCERIES FOR FAMILIES

Supporting families affected by the pandemic with food, hygiene items, and other necessities

Jubilee REACH Communications 6/23/20 Jubilee REACH Communications 6/23/20

Groceries for Families: Week 14 - Day 2

Today’s heat brought a slight breeze with it, which was very welcome. We had fans running inside the building and will be adding more tomorrow. The issue is the masks, which make ventilation tough, generating more heat. Families came steadily all afternoon, with the last half an hour very, very busy right up until 3:10pm. Overall, it was a very nice day with very smooth operation.

Groceries today came from Crossroads Bible, Creekside Covenant, Cornerstone, Westminster Chapel and Bellevue Presbyterian churches, as well as the Jubilee Friends group. A total of 174 orders came in and all went out to families today, including 15 by delivery. It was a wonderful morning with orders coming in steadily from about 9am. Thank you to everyone who participated today. Well done!

Food boxes came about 8:30am this morning from Pacific Coast. Three pallets of 25 pound boxes filled the market area.

As written before, we order these boxes not for the Jubilee families specifically, but for Viviente Dios Methodist Church in White Center. Pastor Guzman came at 9:30am to take a full van load and returned at 3:00pm for the rest.

He is not only providing for his congregation but is helping supply food to the entire neighborhood around his church. It is a wonderful partnership.

We had a guest worker on the PM crew today. Elizabeth is our main contact at Bellevue Presbyterian Church for this program.

She came to experience the program herself and had a great time. We put her to work on the back end of the operation, filling orders with milk and hamburger from the refrigerators, and keeping the conveyor belt moving.

She did a great job. Thank you, Elizabeth!

You’ve heard of the 25 seniors in the community who have lunch delivered to them Tuesday and Friday. The Bellevue Rotary stepped forward this week to also provide them dinner on Sundays from Tutta Bella for the next 8 weeks. As we called those without email, one 90 year old woman was so happy, saying her Sunday dinner is typically peanut butter on English muffin. Thank you Bellevue Rotary and thank you delivery volunteers! We love these people, and it is so great to help them during this time of isolation for them.

A personal story from Ken – follow up:

I wrote this on the May 29 email summary: “There is a family which comes every Tuesday and Friday which I look forward to seeing every day. It is a dad and three kids, about 7, 9 & 11. The dad is quiet, yet does carry a conversation with me. The kids are very nice and stay close to their dad. It’s two boys and a girl, so there are regular conversations about who needs to carry the groceries for dad. The oldest boy definitely wants to carry the heaviest. On Tuesday, the oldest wasn’t there, so today we had him carry ALL the groceries, which the other two just loved. I recently asked about their mom/wife, who they had referred to sometimes. She is a nurse taking care of seniors in Seattle, so goes to work at 3pm daily. They are rightly very proud of her. Hopefully, we’ll see her in person one day. This is just one of the many families, but one I’ve grown very fond of.”
An update: Today, the same family came and brought their mom/wife for the first time. As I spotted them in line, I instantly knew who she was and went directly to them. It was clear to me the kids knew I would be excited to meet her, as they were very excited to introduce us. As it was her first time, she was still getting used to the whole situation, so a little cautious. She said her work today started a little later, so she was able to come. She’s now working in Bellevue, so a lot closer to home. We had a delightful conversation and all ganged up on teasing the dad a little. He works as a driver for Microsoft and is hopeful to be rehired in July. At the front of the line, we gave the mom some pretty hand lotion and chocolates. All the kids each carried a bag of groceries. Pray for them with me.

Thanks for another great day. This ‘Groceries for Families’ continues to fill a gap for the community. It takes all of us pulling together to make it happen. Thank you. Keep going!

Have a wonderful summer evening,

Ken Carpenter
Service Coordinator, Jubilee REACH
On behalf of the Jubilee family

Jubilee REACH Communications 6/22/20 Jubilee REACH Communications 6/22/20

Groceries for Families: Week 14 - Day 1

A very warm and sunny day like today had us thankful the back of this building faces north and the tall roof structure offers a nice amount of shade. If it faced south, we would be toast. Although warm, there was a nice breeze most of the day, and closer to the building under the canopies was much cooler than out near the sunny spots. We all agreed today was very smooth. It was a great start to the week.

Groceries today were delivered by Bellevue Presbyterian, Rain City, 24-Seven, Lighthouse, Common Good, BCRC, and Sacred Heart churches, as well as the Jubilee Friends group. A total of 168 orders came in and all but nine went out to families today, including 25 by delivery. The remaining we had to delay for delivery until tomorrow due to staffing. The morning of incoming orders was great, with lots of people steadily coming in all morning. The first Monday delivery always comes from John at Rain City at about 7:30am. Someone’s gotta be first. Thank you to everyone who participated today.

Lighthouse Delivery.jpg — Lighthouse Delivery

Hygiene items were offered to families today. The picture is to the right shows how the area is set up in the lobby for the crew to access.

Along with the normal items, two special items were offered for the first time. Toothbrushes were provided for each family member. Over 3000 have been delivered here over the past two weeks. Thank you to everyone who rallied to this idea. Families were surprised and delighted to get new toothbrushes for everyone.

Sunscreen was also available and very, very popular. Enough bottles for each family to be offered one was donated by 24-Seven Church, just in time for the start of summer. Thank you, to everyone who helped fill the pantry for this week.

If you have any friends who would like to help with the grocery program but aren’t connected to a participating church, you can have them sign up through Jubilee Friends: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0b49a5aa2ba3fd0-jubilee. Feel free to share this link.

A follow-up story from Ken:

On Saturday, I told the story of a crew painting over graffiti on a fence for a homeowner on 156th Ave and hanging signs of support for racial justice. Many of you ping’ed me back saying how much you enjoyed the story. Regretfully, all five signs were stolen during the first night. They didn’t even last 16 hours before someone tore them down. The homeowner let us know early Sunday. We’re all very disappointed.

An email from a family:

Hola buenas tardes Daniel. Disculpe que lo moleste solo quería agradecerle a usted y a todas las familias que nos ayudan con los alimentos para llevar a nuestra mesa quiero agradecer de todo corazón que Dios se los múltiplique a todos.y los Bendiga. Gracias.

Hello, good afternoon, Daniel. Sorry to bother you. I just wanted to thank you and all the families who help us with groceries to take to our table. I want to thank you with all my heart. May God multiply for you all and may He bless you. Thank you.

Today is the beginning of week 14 of this ‘Groceries for Families’ program. There are 637 families registered for the program currently. Today, Tuesday and Wednesday we are communicating with the families verbally and in writing with a short note about the duration of the program. We’re telling them the program will be open for the summer and available as long as they need it. When they are able to sustain their family again, they are to let us know so we can remove them from the program. Daniel handled the role today, and it went very well. People appreciate what was communicated and understand what is being said. This is the second time we’ve done this exact communication. It will continue in July. The goal is not to pressure families, but to make sure we are on the same page with them.

Thanks for a really super day. The crew felt motivated all day. It’s a very fun place to be with so much going on. The adventure continues!

Enjoy the nice warm evening,

Ken Carpenter
Service Coordinator, Jubilee REACH
On behalf of the Jubilee family

Jubilee REACH Communications 6/20/20 Jubilee REACH Communications 6/20/20

Groceries for Families: Week 13 - Day 6

What started out as rain, with the canopies going up early, turned out to be a delightful morning off warm and dry. Hooray! Saturday families are definitely sleeping in these days. The line at 10am was maybe 40 deep and was through in 15 minutes. The real rush started at 10:45am and lasted a good hour. One man who comes regularly showed up just before 12pm. When we kidded him about being late, he simply said he slept in. Nice. 😊

Groceries today came from Evangelical Chinese, Victory Court, and Bellevue Presbyterian churches, as well as the Jubilee Friends group. A total of 178 orders came in and all went out to families today. The entire morning went smoothly. Enjoy the time-lapse attached, courtesy of Sam. Thank you, everyone!

One of the Jubilee Friends’ shoppers today was a teacher from Sammamish High School nearby. He actually just retired yesterday and was delighted to help families in this way, some of whom have kids at Sammamish. Mr. Burlingame grew up in Bellevue, attended Tillicum Middle School and Sammamish HS himself. If you’ve had kids attend that school, he may have been their teacher. Congratulations and thank you, Mr. Burlingame

The market today was full of some great food for families to take a little extra: apples, potatoes, onions, lettuce, kale, canned vegetables, noodles, soup, and more. Lots of extras came this morning which added to the market. Thank you to everyone who gave!

The hygiene pantry is well stocked and ready for Monday. Thank you to everyone who donated items. Ready!

A separate Jubilee story to share from Ken:

Last summer, as part of the annual Jubilee Service Day, two separate volunteer groups built and painted a fence for a family on the NE corner of 156th Ave and Main Street in Bellevue. If you know that main intersection, you’ve driven by this house & fence many times. Here’s a photo album of the work done last summer: https://jubileereach.smugmug.com/2019-Summer/2019-Jubilee-Service-Day/08242019-I-Jubilee-Service-Day-Donato-Home/. (Sadly, during the planning process last July, his wife passed away, so we all grieved with him all summer.) Well, a few weeks ago, soon after the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, someone painted “Black Lives Matter” on the white fence. It wasn’t done any better than graffiti and looked terrible, even for someone who stands with “Black Lives Matter”. The homeowner tried to hang his own affirming signs, but they were quickly torn down. He called to ask for help. Today, a crew went to his house and in 2 hours had the fence primed, repainted and new signs hung. The homeowner worked with them and is thrilled, not only with the cleanup effort but also for the affirming messages now displayed. The crew will return in the summer to paint the fence with “anti-graffiti” paint, so clean up will be easier if/when it happens again. Such a great story! Thank you, crew. (see below for pictures)

Today was the final day of the week for bulk ingredient items. Here’s a tally of the number of bags given out over the three days this week, plus laundry pods:

Flour: 170 bags or 349 lbs
Rice: 257 bags or 643 lbs
Beans: 237 bags or 393 lbs
Sugar: 333 bags or 317 lbs
Salt: 267 bags or 174 lbs
Laundry Pods: 363 bags or 7,260 loads of laundry

As with each Saturday, here’s a look at statistics to date after 13 weeks:

Program Days: 78
Families currently in the program: 637+
People in these families: 2866 (approximate)
Grocery orders provided to-date: 11,696
Churches & Organizations engaged: 28
Different shoppers participating: 1100 (approximate)

As you know, in the previous two weeks, we emptied the waiting list, bringing 156 new families into the program. We believe this will mark the peak of this program. This past week had 19 families enter the program and 45 families exit the program (some because they removed themselves and some because we removed them for very low attendance). So, for the first time, the number of families in the program decreased, by 26, from 663 to 637. We are expecting to see a trend of decreasing numbers in the coming weeks and are watching it closely.

Today marks the last day of week 13 of this ‘Groceries for Families’ program. It continues to work very well from all sides. Thank you all for the continued participation, prayers, support, and love for the people of our community. It’s just so great to be in this with you all.

Thanks for a great week. Tomorrow is a day of rest. Be back Monday.

Ken Carpenter
Service Coordinator, Jubilee REACH
On behalf of the Jubilee family

Jubilee REACH Communications 6/19/20 Jubilee REACH Communications 6/19/20

Groceries for Families: Week 13 - Day 5

It felt like summer today with the heat of the sun warming the morning and keeping the afternoon toasty. So great for those who like to be warm. For sure, those of us working were sweaty at 1:00pm and kept it up all afternoon. The families were in the sun, when outside the canopies, but we got the line moving quickly, so they weren’t out there long. Families have definitely learned to pace their arrival depending on how long the line is. Smart.

Groceries today came from Crossroads Bible, Evangelical Chinese, Covenant Presbyterian, Westminster Chapel and Bellevue Presbyterian churches, as well as the Jubilee Friends group. A total of 172 orders came in and all went out to families today, including 7 by delivery. It was a great morning of incoming orders. Thank you to all who participated today.

The market was nice and full today.

Blue Plate Catering came one last time, bringing burritos, pancakes, fish sandwiches and frozen smoothies.

There were lots of canned beans and vegetables, as well as dry beans. There were potatoes, lettuce, onions, apples and a little bit of yogurt.

You may recall Fridays are a lunch delivery day to 25 senior citizens in the community.

Lunches are purchased by the Bellevue Fire Department and brought to Jubilee REACH at 10:30am.

Today, volunteers from the National Charity League delivered them all to the homes. See to the right for picture. So great! Thank you all.

Personal stories from Ken:

You may remember hearing about a mom with seven kids, in the past. She wrote a lovely email in early May you can reference back on May 4th of this blog chain. She was always very early to arrive because she needed a shady spot next to the building because she had her three young children with her. Around Mother’s Day, she stopped showing up, which we all noticed. By Memorial Day we had reached out to her to check in, learning that she was simply overwhelmed with life and seven kids to come to Jubilee REACH any longer. She has her own mental issues, which she is very open about, which makes even simple things difficult. We quickly started delivering groceries to her, and Daniel has now done so twice a week ever since. He reported today that she and the kids are doing fine. They actually miss coming to Jubilee REACH and hope to return one day. The groceries are a life-saver for her and the delivery is a huge blessing. One of the kids asked Daniel if it would be possible for a little more chocolate to be included each week. His mom quickly hushed him up, but we can certainly accommodate that request. Starting next week, we’re going to be adding a third bag for them, custom made to their needs. She needs help, and this program is helping sustain them through this tough time. Thank you, everyone!
Back on June 6th, I shared the story of a woman who’s husband had a seizure. She was very worried. We’ve not seen her back here since, which as us concerned. Her normal days are Wed & Sat, so we hope to see her tomorrow. We sent her an email today to check-in. I’ll keep you posted.

This week has cruised along smoothly. Every day brings new stories and opportunities to build stronger relationships with families. When people ask if we had a good day, the response is always yes. Days are measured by 8, 9, and 10’s. That’s the small variance realized over here. Thank you for all each of you do to make that possible. That includes prayer. Please pray for this operation, especially as we transition to summer. Pray for the families. Pray the virus stays away from this place and the working crew. Just pray.

Enjoy the warmth of the evening. Tomorrow is Saturday, so the operation starts early.

Blessings to you all,

Ken Carpenter
Service Coordinator, Jubilee REACH
On behalf of the Jubilee family

Jubilee REACH Communications 6/18/20 Jubilee REACH Communications 6/18/20

Groceries for Families: Week 13 - Day 4

Hello summer! …at least for a couple of days or so. It was so nice to be warm, evening in the morning. All the doors were open today, bringing in a nice breeze. All the canopies went up to offer shade to the families and staff outside. It was a super busy day, AM and PM, but everything just sailed along nicely. The two crews worked really hard. Thank you!

Groceries today came from Sacred Heart, Kalos, Overlake Park Presbyterian, Redeemer, First United Methodist, Bellevue Presbyterian, and Doxa churches, as well as the Jubilee Friends group. A total of 187 orders came in and all but 17 went out to families today, including 34 by delivery. The remaining orders will mostly go out tomorrow as deliveries, as we ran out of time today. Thank you to everyone participating today. Thursdays are especially busy with nine different groups bringing groceries.

Blue Plate Catering from Seattle was back today with lots of ready to eat meals for families: hamburger, chicken strips, chicken corn dogs, beef tacos, and some very tasty looking chocolate cookies. All were very popular. Bruce will be back for one more delivery day tomorrow. Thank you!

The market was also stocked with many canned items, fresh lettuce, potatoes, herbs, and even a nice selection of yogurt on ice.

Two members of Kalos Church own Armstrong Services, a commercial cleaning, and building maintenance services company.

Today, they donated 5 boxes of toilet paper and 2 boxes of paper towels.

See to the left for picture.

Thank you!

A donation of apples, potatoes and onions came from Chelan Foods today.

Ed took the Jubilee REACH Thrift Store truck to a distribution farm in Maltby to pick it up.

See to the right for a picture of the crew unloading it all.

A personal follow-up story from Ken:

Many of you on this email and reading the blog have sought me out in person to comment on how the story of the family who only eats vegetables and my change of attitude has touched you. Very nice to hear. The family continues to come Mondays and Thursdays, usually the wife but sometimes the husband. There is a bin in our refrigerator which I just toss vegetables and fruit into as it arrives each day. It’s been quite amazing to see what is appearing, so much so that I wonder if some of you are sending specific things just for them. It’s working! On Monday this week, they had eggplant, kale, asparagus, broccoli, and lots more common items. Today, their bags had a personal-size watermelon, kale, cherries, carrots, herbs, and lots more common items. Only the mom was here, so I asked about their daughter. Today is her graduation day from Sherwood Forest Elementary, so she was home watching the ceremony online. The mom gave me a very nice smile as I handed her the groceries and wished her family congratulations. Keep sending the different vegetables! They will reach this family, I promise.

Each day right before we open for the families, we do a quick crew orientation. We talk through the crew positions, inventory of items, and anything unusual going on. Additionally, we also talk about two things: 1) the importance of all the health practices we have in place, so as to keep the virus out of here; 2) receiving the love, time, treasure and effort poured into all the groceries, hygiene, bulk foods, diapers, and more by all the shoppers and the need to pass it along to all the families. We then pray (today it was in Spanish) and take the silly selfie you see each day. It is a bit of a ritual and a good way to stay focused on the main things around us.

Thank you for another wonderful day. Have a great and warm evening, wherever you are.

Blessings,

Ken Carpenter
Service Coordinator, Jubilee REACH
On behalf of the Jubilee family

Jubilee REACH Communications 6/17/20 Jubilee REACH Communications 6/17/20

Groceries for Families: Week 13 - Day 3

Wednesday sure seems to get here fast. Wow, I can’t believe it. The turning of the weather came about 12:30pm today when the clouds broke and gave way to warm sunshine. We had to hustle to put up canopies for shade. It made for a simply delightful and comfortable afternoon. Families seem to take their time in coming today, with the opening line being quite small. By 1:20pm, the line was growing and stayed steady until 3:00pm. Busy day!

Groceries today were delivered by Bellevue Presbyterian, Highland Covenant, Bellevue Christian Reformed, and St. Louise churches, as well as the Jubilee Friends group. A total of 159 orders came in and all went out to families today, including one by delivery. It was a busy place this morning, with lots of activities with groceries and other items coming in. Thank you to all who participated today!

The Brandao families lives nearby and has been making lovely cloth masks for a few weeks, delivering about 50 each week. To the right a is a picture of the newest batch that came today.

They are all full of color and fun patterns. We use them to give to anyone who only has a cloth mask. People absolutely love them!

We’re seeing more and more of them returning, which is fun. Thank you Brandao family!

You will remember the first mention of Blue Plate Seattle last week, which is a catering company near the U-district.

They returned today with 200 ready-to-eat meals of spaghetti, hamburgers and chicken strips, as well as rice-crispy-treat bars. See to the left for a picture of them in the market today. They are a very fun addition and will also be her tomorrow & Friday. Thank you, Bruce!

Today was the last day this week for families to receive hygiene items. Thank you to everyone who filled the pantry this week. We are now well-stocked to give families toothbrushes beginning Monday. Stay tuned! Tomorrow will begin the bulk ingredients of flour, rice, sugar, salt, and pinto beans. See below for a picture of the staging area. We are ready to go! Thank you to everyone who helped fill these bins this week.

A few emails from families today:

Quiero darle las gracias por toda la ayuda que me ha brindado por todo este tiempo, ya que para mi y mi familia nos ayudamos mucho Dios bendiga todas las personas que hacen posible esta gran ayuda.

I want to thank you for all the help you have given me during all this time, especially because my family and I have been really helped by this. God bless you all the people who made this great help possible.

Hola buenos días, solo para hacerle saber que por ahora NO necesitaremos el programa de comida, y para agradecerle a todas las personas que de alguna otra manera nos brindaron esos alimentos, pues nos ayudó bastante, fue de mucha ayuda, también gracias a todas las personas que estuvieron repartiendo la comida siempre muy amables. Que Dios los bendiga por siempre.🙂

Hello, good morning, I just wanted to make known that for the time being, we do not need help with groceries and to thank all the people that in different forms gave us food. It helped us a lot, and it was a lot of help, also thank you to the people giving out the food, always very kind. God bless you always.🙂

Today was a great day! Nothing overly unique happened, but it was a typical day in the life of this program. Food is the center of this, but the real way we are serving people is through relationship, love, and friendship. Please continue to pray for these 600+ families, which represent nearly 3000 people in our community. They are lovely people.

Bring on the warm evenings! Tomorrow shall be another day.

Ken Carpenter
Service Coordinator, Jubilee REACH
On behalf of the Jubilee family

Groceries for Families began in March 2020 to serve families financially affected by the pandemic. Over 25 organizations and churches have partnered with Jubilee REACH to provide families with groceries, hygiene items, and supplies.

blog home page