Step Up Stories: Leslie and Trinity

Meet Leslie and her daughter Trinity! The Step Up team met them recently at BronxWorks, where we went to volunteer to help distribute food purchased in part with a grant from our Emergency Food Fund.

Leslie and Trinity are our neighbors here in the South Bronx. Trinity loves the swimming classes at BronxWorks. The pandemic has closed the pool, of course. But the BronxWorks staff still get to see Trinity and her mom at the food pantry… lucky! Leslie tells us they’ve had a great experience with BronxWorks. She even shares food with her neighbors, some of them elderly and unable to wait in long food pantry lines. Folks like Leslie, Trinity and their neighbors shouldn’t have to worry about where their next meal will come from. But so many in the South Bronx do.

Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, the Bronx was New York City’s hungriest borough. More than one in four (26%) of Bronx residents, including nearly 20% of all children, experienced food insecurity in 2018, according to federal data analyzed by Hunger Free America. Nearly one third of Bronx residents, approximately 400,000 individuals, live in poverty, and struggle to maintain a healthy diet. With this backdrop, the Covid-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected those who live in this community.

The Step Up mission is to help people in need achieve and sustain stability, wellness and self-sufficiency. The Emergency Food Fund was created to immediately get food in the hands of families who desperately need it. A total of $500,000 will be distributed to organizations in the South Bronx that are aligned with Step Up’s mission, and who have the infrastructure in place to distribute food to the community.

BronxWorks has been able to increase the number of families served, and expand the hours of their food pantry. Your donation in any amount will help our non-profit partners continue to help our community recover and thrive after the Covid-19 crisis. Thank you.