April 22, 2021

This week ended on a very good note, with the operation running smoothly all-around and many good things happening around Jubilee. The weather did turn cooler this morning, with cloud cover and a chill in the air. We thought it would stay that way all day, but about 11:30am, the sun poked out and made the afternoon quite lovely. What a week of weather! People braved the chilly morning to drop off lots of groceries, pantry, and hygiene items. Thank you, everyone! Families lined up at 1:00pm, but it went away by 1:30pm, which was odd. It came back and stayed steady for the rest of the afternoon. Lots of families came today to pick up for other families. In the end, it was a very normal Thursday.

Groceries today were provided by Lighthouse, Victory Court, Doxa, First United Methodist, Highland Covenant, Bellevue Presbyterian, Overlake Park Presbyterian, Sacred Heart Parish & School, and Crossroads Bible churches, as well as Champions Foundation and the Jubilee Friends group. A total of 209 orders came in today, and all went out to families, along with 31 carried over from yesterday. Thank you to everyone who donated today.

The AM volunteers were from Sacred Heart Parish today, with most being veterans of the shift. They did a great job keeping up with a busy morning of deliveries and many other tasks. The food boxes arrived about 10:30am. They iced and wrapped all five pallets quickly. The last 45 minutes of their shift were busy packing about 110 boxes with fresh produce. It was a machine in action. Well done, crew!

We have one small freezer, which has been deemed the ‘fish freezer.’ For families who don’t eat other meats, we like to offer them fish as an alternative, which is about 20 families each week. One donor has made it her mission to keep the freezer stocked. Thank you, Pam! Returning today for another trout season was Linda, who kept the freezer full last summer from her lake fishing adventures. We received her first 5 trout today and look forward to more in the coming weeks. Thank you, Linda!

An extra delivery from Amazon Go in Overlake came this morning with lots of bagged salads. Thank you, Rick! Another delivery from a local distributor brought sandwiches, snacks, and soda. Thank you, Mike & Gil!

All extra food boxes from the week were given to St. Monica Parish & El Dios Viviente Methodist Church late this afternoon. These two partners help get this food out to the community quickly, so it doesn’t just stay in the Jubilee freezers. We are blessed to be in continued partnership with them both.

A few updates and stories:

An email from a family: “Hello. I want to thank Jubilee REACH. When the pandemic started, everything was fear, insecurity because I had no job for 3 months. My daughter goes to Big Picture, and her Site Coach is Jakeh. He was able to put us on the Jubilee list so we could get food. I could go back to work, but it was unstable, and when they closed again, I no longer had a job. Because of Jubilee, my family we have food. I could not work for 5 months, and it wasn't easy to decide to pay the bills or food. And with their help, I can put food on the table for my children every day. Although I already have work again, it is less than full time. And still unstable, and there is still a risk of backing up or closing again. Even so, Jubilee is always there for my family and me. And they were also able to help pay $ 300 for my Rent. Thanks to all the people who donate money and who buy food and make this possible. Thanks to all the volunteers who do everything possible so that each family does not lack anything. May God give you more and multiply them. L-“

Liliana returned today to take sandwiches to downtown Seattle and this time was joined by a volunteer, Sara. The two took 2 boxes of sandwiches to Pioneer Square and sent back several pictures. Thank you, ladies, for passing on both food and love to the homeless there.

Elbert’s family has been in the program since spring 2020. His kids were in the Jubilee ‘before and after school program,’ so we knew them well. When the pandemic hit, both he and his wife soon lost their jobs. He was a contractor at T-Mobile and had been in telecommunications for most of his career. His wife worked part-time for a Spanish radio station. He said today; he is finally back to work for another company outside telecommunications. His wife is interviewing but hasn’t found work yet. Any offer she gets has to be weighed against childcare costs, as their kids are only in school part-time in person. Plus, summer is coming when the kids will be home full-time. Financially, they are not quite whole yet, but it is getting better. It is expensive to live in Bellevue, and living paycheck to paycheck is very stressful. For now, they are still stretching their dollars, with the help of ‘Groceries for Families.’ He is very grateful for all the support.

Thank you for another great week of ‘Groceries for Families.’ May your own life be blessed and changed by your involvement.

Have a great weekend,

Ken Carpenter
Director- Community Care, Jubilee REACH
On behalf of the Jubilee family

Groceries for Families: Week 56 - Day 3

Groceries for Families: Week 57 - Day 1

Groceries for Families: Week 56 - Day 2