Giving Back During a Pandemic
By Bruno Povejsil, studiobstyle guest blogger
In the wake of COVID-19, it is more important than ever to support local businesses and the most vulnerable members of our community. Over the months of April and May, studiobstyle reached out on our Instagram and gave away 8 gift cards to support our local bakery, Sun Street Breads, and The Wedge, our local co-op grocer and cafe. Moving forward, we’ll continue to host these giveaways and work with the community to help keep our neighborhood businesses open and thriving in the face of a world changed by COVID-19.
We matched the April gift cards’ total value in donations to Second Harvest Heartland, a Twin Cities-based food bank and hunger awareness organization. Donations help Second Harvest assemble emergency food boxes that reduce physical interactions with at-risk people in need, register people for SNAP benefits, and support Minnesota’s Central Kitchen, a new community initiative that delivers meals prepared by local restaurants to those without access to kitchens or hot food.
Minnesota’s Central Kitchen in particular is a huge deal: it feeds hungry people, generates work and income for kitchens and food workers that were left in the lurch by COVID-19 shutdowns, and prevents food waste! Other initiatives include the Child Hunger team, which is helping kids who are impacted by the loss of school lunches, and Emergency Farmers’ Markets, which distribute produce that would otherwise go to waste to agencies that can sell it in open-air pop-up markets.
Nutrition and health are closely linked, and a good diet is especially important during a global pandemic. Underfed or poorly-fed people are more likely to get sick or develop health complications that could cause a COVID-19 infection to lead to an expensive hospital stay, or even death. In other words, hunger directly puts more strain on our healthcare systems and makes our society even more vulnerable to the coronavirus.
The pressure on food banks like Second Harvest is growing every day during the COVID-19 pandemic, as more people than ever need assistance securing healthy food for themselves and their families. We’re proud to support Second Harvest in every way we can. If you’re looking for ways to help, you can check their FAQ and food donation guidelines here.
As for other local businesses, we’re starting to see more of our favorite spots open up after a long shutdown. If you haven’t already, now is a great time to explore curbside pickup and delivery options, or even venture into newly-reopened stores and eateries if you feel safe doing so! They need the business and you need the contact with the outside world. Just remember to bring your mask and continue observing social distancing rules!
Service options like curbside pickup that businesses have adopted to stay open during the shelter-in-place order might be more consumer-friendly and convenient than in-store eating and shopping, and may even become a new norm. It’s great that the option to experience a business’ physical space has returned. Keep an eye out for future studiobstyle giveaways, maybe we can hook you up with an excuse to get out of the house and check out a cool local business!
Bruno Povejsil is a Twin Cities-based writer focusing on local businesses, non-profit organizations, and culture.