Food Insecurity - Doing our Part
Food insecurity affected 11.5% of Americans long before the pandemic. That percentage will continue to rise for the foreseeable future; however, grocery stores and food banks have the opportunity to alleviate some of that burden.
Bridging Medical Gaps Collaboration is excited to announce a new collaboration to help:
· Request your local grocers and markets to donate their leftover product or proceeds to food banks or soup kitchens (letter template on the website)
o If a grocer in your locality donates and you do too, you’ll be entered into a raffle for a gift card to that store!!!!
· Donate to food banks or food organizations
o Tag us in a picture or send us a picture on social media of the supplies or receipt and you will be entered into a raffle for a brand new FitBit!
We have the power to make an impact in these unprecedented times
The text for our grocery letter is pasted below, and our letterhead template is attached.
[BMGC Letterhead]
[Date]
Subject: Requesting Donations to Combat [Your city] Food Insecurity During COVID-19
Dear [Person/Business],
My name is [Name], a fellow member of the [Your city] community. I am writing to you on behalf of myself, our community, and Bridging Medical Gaps Collaboration. Bridging Medical Gaps Collaboration is a nonprofit organization with the mission of developing a space for medicine, public health, and business to work collaboratively. I am part of our organization’s movement to combat food insecurity which is impacting [Your City] and nationwide during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Food insecurity is what 1 in 10 people and 1 in 5 children have faced in the United States, even before the current pandemic. Now with growing unemployment and lost wages, crowds of Americans are lined up outside food banks - their only means of feeding their families.
We need your help to make a significant impact in our fight against food insecurity. We are asking local grocers and markets to decrease food waste and donate excess food to our local food banks, or make other monetary donations. [Consider suggesting/adding local food banks/pantries near the potential donor]. If your business is able to make these changes or donations, we would be happy to share this collaborative community effort with our growing social media platform and local media outlets. We are also asking if there are other ways your business would like to contribute to this cause, such as gift cards to your stores for our individual donors.
We will be complimenting your efforts with our own! We are reaching out and asking individuals to donate what they can to local food banks, and will keep track in our overall tally. We will also be offering prizes to individual donors, including a FitBit, encouraging a way for our donors to stay active and healthy in a safe way during these times.
Any support would be highly appreciated by myself, the Bridging Medical Gaps Collaboration, and especially our struggling community in this time of global crisis. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at [phone number/email/both]. Also feel free to visit our website at https://www.bridgingmedicalgaps.org/ to learn more about who we are and what we do! Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
