Feeding the hungry with the SAFE network

Looking tired, she walks into the Price Hill Family Activity Center. She’s been worried. She’s hungry. Her family is hungry too. She approaches the staff and volunteers shyly and slowly. Met with a welcoming response, she’s a little more at ease. They’re here to give her some relief.

The woman smiles and folds her hands in a prayer-like position. “Thank you,” she whispers under her breath. Food. She’s given a bag of food – fresh produce, soup, a sandwich. More importantly she’s seen. She’s loved. She leaves not only with sustenance for her body, but for her soul.

This was a common scene last Friday at the Family Activity Center, as Lord’s Gym Ministries welcomed volunteers from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital to distribute food through their System to Achieve Food Equality (SAFE) network.

SAFE is a network of organizations across Cincinnati that are committed to improving food security in the community to ensure that all 66,000 children have the food that they need to grow, develop, learn, and thrive. SAFE hold pop up food sites in Avondale, East Price Hill and Lower Price Hill. They also offer grant opportunities and have recently awarded a grant to Lord’s Gym.

“It’s exciting to be partnering with SAFE,” said Lord’s Gym Executive Director Scott Bowers. “Friday, it was so good to see our building (slowly reopening after an extensive renovation) being used for its purpose. We hosted our collaborators and provided a safe place and offered the fulfillment of basic needs; all while showing God’s love to our friends in Price Hill. What a blessing!”

Kristen, with SAFE said she was happy to be apart of Friday’s pop up and is excited about the new partnership with Lord’s Gym.

“We have learned that our community’s No. 1 issue is food insecurity,” she said. “We want to do something about that. So, SAFE was formed. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from you deserve to have your basic needs met; all our children deserve to have food on the table.”

Erin, a volunteer with Children’s Hospital said it was a wonderful spending time at Lord’s Gym and handing out the groceries.  

“I’m passionate about the community and giving back,” she said. “It’s important to support local. You must start at the local level. If your community isn’t succeeding, then you can’t succeed. I’m blessed to have the opportunity to volunteer in this way and help with SAFE. We’re all the same and we’re all supposed to help one another.”

There were lots of “thank yous” and special moments shared with our friends who came in a received the groceries. We appreciate SAFE and their network of partner and are happy to join them in their efforts to end food insecurity.