As businesses remain shut in an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19, many families who no longer have income are fighting food insecurity.

To meet this need, the Mattie Rhodes Center, a local nonprofit serving the community, is working to gather financial donations to be able to provide for those most impacted— low-income, undocumented, and refugee families.

“It came about when my partner and other people in the agency were discussing that we knew it would be a need and how we could fill that need, which led to further research and establishing a food committee,” said Kelsey Mahoney, community resource specialist with Mattie Rhodes. “We were able to come up with a couple sources for food and offer 10 families a week’s worth of food for each person in their household. Once we did that, we asked ourselves how we can continue to serve more families.”

They are currently working with You Give Goods to offer emergency food assistance.

The Mattie Rhodes Center also has received a grant from SchoolSmartKC to help provide emergency funding for families to pay utilities, rent, and access food.

How to access food

If you are in need of food, contact the Mattie Rhodes Center by calling (816) 241-3780.

Mahoney said the Mattie Rhodes Center is prioritizing undocumented families, but is here to serve the entire community.

“If a family has a need for food and we don’t have what they need, we have staff members who can help find those resources outside of Mattie Rhodes,” said Mahoney. “The main focus is going to be undocumented families because there are so many places for assistance that they are ineligible to receive help. That’s our number one target, but we don’t turn anyone away.”

How to donate

The Mattie Rhodes Center is accepting monetary donations through the You Give Goods link. Those interested in donating can “shop” for specific items like chicken, beans, fruit, vegetables, and pasta that are on the food list, or food boxes can be purchased that include a box of “most needed” food items for families.

To donate, click the You Give Goods link here then click “shop now.”

To donate directly to the Mattie Rhodes Center, visit their “ways to give” page here.

For more information, visit mattierhodes.org.