Lansing Sun

In Livingston County, food pantries have started to work together to help meet the demands as Michigan's state of emergency passes its two-month mark during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In the county, over 500,000 pounds of food have been given out to those in need during the state of emergency, Livingston Daily reports. Gleaners Community Food Bank alone gave out over 456,000 pounds of food since March. The pantry said the food was distributed through the Shared Harvest Pantry, Pickney School Food Mobile pantry and Three Fires School Food Mobile pantry.

"Through Gleaners added COVID-19 response efforts in Livingston County, we’ve served nearly 3,550 additional families, 2,215 families with children and just over 1,300 seniors. This equates to just under 77,000 additional meals through these new efforts, which have included new School Food Mobile Pantries and emergency food packages to assist our senior population with limited mobility," Bridget Brown, director of Food Secure Livingston for Gleaners, told Livingston Daily.

But Gleaners wasn't the only pantry to see an increase in demand. Bountiful Harvest, Livingston County's pantry, has seen an increase since the coronavirus pandemic began.

"Bountiful Harvest has gone from... distributing 27,194 pounds of food for 478 families in 2019 to 76,231 pounds of food for 1,192 families in 2020," Yvonne Cavalli, president of Bountiful Harvest, told Livingston Daily.

An online system is being used at Bountiful Harvest to keep customers and volunteers safe during the pandemic. Residents can make an online order, then pick it up or have it delivered.

"Livingston County always comes together in tough times and takes care of its own. Without everyone helping, we would not be able to complete this mission of love," Cavalli told Livingston Daily.

The Salvation Army is also making changes to meet demands. The Salvation Army of Livingston has a partnership with Howell Public Schools to help distribute food, according to Livingston Daily. In April, the schools gave out over 14,700 pounds of food.

Lunches are also being given to students in the county from the Salvation Army. The organization plans to keep this up until at least June, according to Livingston Daily.

The organization is also providing a food delivery program for elders and those who are homebound in the county.