Lifespan Local COVID-19 Relief

In the second half of March, Lydia Prado’s phone started ringing. Denver had closed down most businesses and ordered residents to “shelter in place” to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus. Westwood residents reached out to Lydia, sharing stories of lost jobs and bare pantries.

With initial funding and administrative support from the Barton Institute, soon augmented by gifts from other donors, the Lifespan Local team began immediately collecting and distributing food, diapers, cleaning supplies, and other resources to people who needed it.

“One woman told me she’d just been on her knees, praying for food,” Lifespan Local staffer Toni Diaz said after the first round of food deliveries.

Throughout the pandemic, Lifespan Local has partnered with Kaizen Food Rescue, Roots Family Center, Común, and Re:Vision to create a weekly food distribution on Wednesdays that helps hundreds of families. Another round of support goes out on Fridays, through a partnership with Food for Thought. Lifespan Local is also partnering closely with the Undocumented Workers Fund hosted at Impact Charitable to provide financial relief for our community members severely impacted by COVID-19.

“We’re able to respond so quickly because we already had connections,” Lydia explains. “People trust us and we can help them to remain stable until they can get back to work.”

To learn more about Lifespan Local’s COVID-19 relief efforts, click here.