Disaster recovery fund helps feed Dubuque

DUBUQUE, Iowa — Because of COVID-19, feeding the hungry in Dubuque County is a greater challenge than ever. Increased need for food due to unemployment and school closures has added pressure to the supply chain. Many in need are also at a higher risk of complications from COVID-19, meaning they need meals delivered to reduce the chances of contracting the virus in public. Plus, the cost of meat has risen, limiting supply of this traditional protein source.

To address these challenges, the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque convened 28 organizations working to keep those in need healthy and fed during the pandemic, including funders, food providers and food suppliers. Jason Neises, community development coordinator for the Community Foundation, facilitates one-on-one interviews and biweekly conference calls to form new partnerships between these stakeholders, share updates and collect data. 

Data shows that it takes over $50,000 a week to provide food for those in need in the Dubuque area — that’s about 25,000 meals at $2.20 per meal. Through the Greater Dubuque Disaster Recovery Fund, the Community Foundation has awarded grants for $416,350 to food providers to help meet these growing needs and manage the specific challenges the pandemic has presented. 

“The newly unemployed are a growing category of those in need. They’re not people who have been traditional participants in social services. They don’t know how to navigate the systems and may be more reluctant to seek help, which we are concerned about,” said Neises. 

Traditional support for food providers like food drives, galas, and other fundraisers have been canceled due to the pandemic, yet needs have only grown. Dubuque Area Labor Harvest used grant dollars from the recovery fund to launch a new service that has made over 600 food deliveries. “When the pandemic started, we learned about a growing need for food deliveries to high-risk people who had concerns about going out in the community,” said Tom Townsend, the organization’s treasurer. “Without the Disaster Recovery Fund and United Way, we wouldn’t have gotten this program off the ground.” 

Food providers expressed a desire to provide information about other available services, especially for the newly unemployed, who may need supplies, transportation, utility assistance or help with brain health issues. “The group shared information about all the social services in the community, and we put together a resource guide that’s being shared in food boxes and meal bags,” said Neises. The guide can also be downloaded from the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque’s website.

For many people, the food deliveries have made a huge difference. Townsend described a delivery to a woman in Table Mound. “She was really in a bad way. When she saw what was in the box, she started to cry and told me we’d saved her life,” he said. “That kind of interaction inspires us to keep doing this work.”

The Community Foundation will continue its partnership with the food provider network to anticipate needs in the coming months, working together toward a sustainable solution for the long-term.

For more information or to support your neighbors with a gift to the Disaster Recovery Fund, visit dbqfoundation.org/drf.