VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Members of the Virginia Beach nonprofit Sisters Healing Sisters spent the week preparing for their annual Passover the Blessings community feeding. It’s benefiting a population in society that’s not always remembered.
They're serving 50 hot meals for people at the Judeo Christian Outreach Center, a shelter for the homeless.
“We feel like the homeless population is forgotten about, in general, so we definitely wanted to make sure we were still able to serve during this time so they know we do care and we’re still there for them," Sisters Healing Sisters founder Rickkita Taylor said.
But, she added, it almost didn’t happen.
The JCOC had to close its dining area and kitchen to comply with guidelines to slow the coronavirus outbreak. So her team couldn’t cook or serve the meals there.
“With the kitchen being closed and us not having access and with the exposure being out there, we actually canceled,” she said.
They had to get creative. They partnered with a catering company to cook and package the meals as a grab-n-go option.
“We were able to come up with a way to package the meals and just drop them off. Although we won’t be able to serve, we will still be able to get the bags of food and water to them,” she said. “It’s basically meals on the go. They’ll come up to the shelter, grab their bags and leave.”
Taylor said her team wanted to make sure people who rely on the JCOC for food or shelter, know they’re not forgotten about, especially during the COVID-19 crisis.
“I think that through all of this that it’s really important that we keep a sense of community, that we all take the time to help each other as much as we can,” Taylor said. “Although we are in a crisis, it’s still important for us to help those that are in need.”
Sisters Healing Sisters also runs feeding programs on Thanksgiving and Christmas. The non-profit relies entirely on donations to keep the initiative going.
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