In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, our Disaster Relief Committee has been working diligently to provide much-needed assistance to people in the U.S. and India who have been affected by the virus, including those who are facing food insecurity and economic instability due to lockdowns and unemployment. In case you missed our previous updates, you can read about them here.
What’s next in 2021? We foresee an ongoing and increased need for disaster relief in the months to come. Plans are currently underway to provide vocational rehabilitation due to the tremendous migration of labor moving away from India’s city centers and into rural villages throughout India. One of the biggest lessons we all learned this year was relying on others for help, and that the populations of individuals with the means to help vs. those who cannot is always shifting. In 2021 we are relying on those who can give, and will continue to serve those who cannot.
Please check back often, as we will be updating this page periodically with new disaster relief project information as it becomes available.
Disaster Relief Update 1/22/2021
7,500+ Families Helped Through COVID Relief and Rehabilitation Projects in 2020
By July 30, 2020, Share & Care had allocated $300,000 in disaster relief funding and partnered with 16 NGOs to reach thousands of struggling people in the U.S and India — including more than 7,500 struggling families. We distributed grocery kits to families in need, served hot meals to families and daily wage earners, distributed healthcare items such as soap and masks, and served thousands of meals to local healthcare heroes.
In December 2020, Share & Care volunteered and provided funding for the distribution of thousands of emergency food boxes to families in several municipalities across New Jersey (the long-time home of our foundation’s headquarters) including Roselle, Harrison, Paterson, Trenton, and Jersey City.
Speaking to Share & Care Trustee Amar Shah at the recent food distribution event in Roselle, Roselle Mayor Donald A. Shaw remarked, “Because of you, over a thousand people will be able to eat food tonight.”
That’s a powerful message in our modern times, but is becoming increasingly urgent. The Department of Agriculture estimates that nearly one in four U.S. households experienced food insecurity in 2020, and New Jersey’s food insecurity rate is projected to climb from a 2010–2020 low of 8.7 percent (11.3 percent for children under 18) to 13.5 percent in 2021. All of which prompted Share & Care to take on the challenge of helping local residents. “Like everywhere, there are people in desperate need for others to stand up and care for those who are struggling during this difficult time,” said Share & Care president, Sharadkumar Shah.
Working with the Livingston Lions Club, we provided more than 5,000 food boxes — weighing more than 150,000 pounds total — consisting of dairy products, fresh fruits and vegetables, and other pantry items, to long lines of local citizens in need of help.
