Despite the circumstances of the world, the Community Hope Center continues moving forward in its mission to provide assistance to the families in our community who need it the most.

Today is #GivingTuesdayNow, a new global day of giving and unity in addition to the regularly scheduled holiday-inspired Dec. 1, 2020 #GivingTuesday – as an emergency response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19.

For those who have the ability, it’s an additional chance come together to create a wave of generosity, citizen engagement, action from business and philanthropy, and support for communities and nonprofits around the world that desperately need it to help the desperate with the desperation created and caused by the coronavirus.

Again, if you have the means, this marks a great opportunity to help the helpers like the Community Hope Center.

Each Wednesday, without fail, the CHC has fed over 3,000 people since March 16 — but that is what CEO/Executive Director Mary Downey considers a temporary solution. The agency’s focus remains on long-term solutions to poverty. Even during this crisis, the center continues to move families into stable housing. Six formerly homeless households now have a safe place to call home, with four households awaiting available units.

“In spite of this pandemic, we still believe in self-determined success and sustainability,” Downey said.

Her research shows that 1 in 6 individuals seeking emergency assistance are living in hotels, and 72 percent are currently unemployed. Employers are actively working to re-open under CDC guidelines and this may mean less staff, shorter operating hours, and even closure.

“The families we serve are going to be affected by the economic impact of COVID-19 long after we return to ‘normal,” Downey said. “Our vision for a ‘new normal’ is one we’ve held since we started in 2013 — no child should grow up living in a hotel, no family should have to choose between eating and life-saving medication, and there is no reason poverty must continue to exist.”

The Community Hope Center is ready and willing to walk alongside families to achieve that best new normal, whether it’s stable housing or better economic opportunities, together with the clients we serve.

Ready, willing — and hopefully able. Help the Community Hope Center move forward with a donation on this #GivingTuesdayNow and continue the mission to end homelessness and restore hope it still feels it can accomplish despite the current trying times.