Responding to
COVID-19

"We must find time to stop and thank the people who
make a difference in our lives."
John F. Kennedy

My years with Kitchen Angels have taught me a lot about gratitude. I have good health, a comfortable home, a happy relationship and many friends. I can enjoy daily walks in nature. I have enough to eat. So, when a world-shattering crisis such as the current pandemic strikes, I realize just how much I have to be grateful for every day.

And the news is a powerful reminder of just how devastating things are for so many people.

Robert Emmons , professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis, who is considered to be the world’s leading scientific expert on gratitude, writes "it is precisely under crisis conditions when we have the most to gain by a grateful perspective on life. In the face of demoralization, gratitude has the power to energize. In the face of brokenness, gratitude has the power to heal, In the face of despair, gratitude has the power to bring hope. In other words, gratitude can help us cope with hard times."

Our clients teach us a lot about gratitude every day. Most have very little material wealth and nearly all are struggling with life-challenging medical conditions. And yet, they are frequently the first to notice kindness. I was recently moved beyond words when a client made the financial sacrifice to send a donation in support of our work and wrote "I was inspired not just by the healthy food, to donate, but also because my Wednesday delivery volunteer waits at the bottom of the sidewalk to my door, until I have opened my door . . . then he waves to me. It's just such a heart warming thing to do. It cuts through the isolation, and I'm so grateful."
Even donors remind me about being grateful. One recently wrote "but despite a compromised immune system, we cannot complain. We feel good, eat too well, enjoy each other, do a lot of hiking and have a few friends with whom we have virtual happy hours."

Feeling grateful in times of crisis and stress is no easy thing and it's not about minimizing the impact of a difficult experience. As Professor Emmons points out, "when disaster strikes, gratitude provides a perspective from which we can view life in its entirety and not be overwhelmed by temporary circumstances." I think it also allows us to more easily reach out to those whose circumstances are less fortunate than our own and help in whatever way we can.

I am grateful for every Kitchen Angels volunteer who takes the time and energy, as well as the risk, to help feed our homebound neighbors and make our community just a bit more resilient.

In gratitude,
‌
Thank you for your vigilance. We want you to stay safe, healthy and informed.
Lauren, Dwayne, and Tamara show that face masks can be both functional and stylish as they express their gratitude for the extraordinary work of our
family of Angels.
We've received many other uplifting messages including this one:

"Alas, we are in our 70s and begrudgingly decided a few weeks ago to to stay at home until the COVID-19 pandemic is no longer a risk. This was not an easy decision. The unfairness of folks like us being able to take shelter at home, by choice, with plenty of food in relative comfort, while some of our sisters and brothers have no other options and continue to rely on meal deliveries from kitchen Angels, is not lost on us. We have wondered how you Angels are able to continue your work with fewer volunteers while the underlying needs of the people you serve remain and, in fact, are intensified as the options for good healthy food and social contact have been drastically narrowed for us all. To say you are a lifeline, now as tenuous and stretched thin as ever, is no exaggeration. You are brave, unselfish servants to our community."

And this from one of our founders:

"I just want to say that you and everyone at Kitchen Angels are doing truly AMAZING work - especially given the pressure and stress of the challenges you've had to face. It's moving to see how you're all handling things so conscientiously, professionally and compassionately. The meals and calls are keeping everyone informed, and the volunteers and clients are being protected and given what they need to successfully navigate through these incredibly difficult times.

I'm sure you know that Kitchen Angels' spirit of love and caring is another hopeful light in so much darkness right now. And the power of that light to change the world, no matter how small it may seem . . . has never been more profound or needed.

Angelic blessings to everyone there - keep up the phenomenal work!"

Tony D'Agostino