Kaiser Permanente, in partnership with non-profit, Sowing Empowerment & Economic Development, Inc. (SEED) and Prince George’s County Councilmember Dannielle Glaros, this week unveiled two refrigerated food storage trailers bearing murals by local artists. The two new units, which were purchased through a donation from the health system, will expand access to fresh food for those in the Greater Riverdale community and surrounding areas. The refrigerated food storage trailers are located at the Christian Life Center in Riverdale, Md. and were purchased through a $24,000 contribution from Kaiser Permanente to SEED, Inc., which provides food and other resources to low and moderate-income families.
“Many residents of the Greater Riverdale community have been hit especially hard by this pandemic, making food insecurity an even greater issue,” said George Leventhal, director of Community Health at Kaiser Permanente. “This contribution is just a small part of the work we’re doing at Kaiser Permanente to remove barriers to health, like food insecurity, and we hope that these food storage trailers help to expand access to healthy, nutritious food throughout Greater Riverdale.”
Kaiser Permanente also hired local artists and brought in local art students to create artistic murals on the food trailers. The murals were revealed today at the Riverdale site. In collaboration with the Greater Riverdale Cares initiative, a consortium of government leaders and local organizations focused on addressing food insecurity that is led by Councilmember Glaros, Kaiser Permanente and SEED hope that the mural-laden food storage units serve not only as a way to expand access to healthy food in Greater Riverdale, but also to brighten the community and offer hope.
“Since launching Greater Riverdale Cares in April, we have provided more than 1 million pounds of fresh produce and groceries to residents in need,” said Councilmember Glaros. “These refrigerated trailers will serve the practical purpose of safely storing food donations prior to distribution and will serve as an inspirational reminder of a community rallying together to support each other.”
SEED distributes food to hundreds of families each Wednesday at the East Pines Community Center in Riverdale beginning at 12 p.m. and Councilmember Glaros sends updates on weekly food distribution opportunities for those in need. The Greater Riverdale Cares collaborative has helped feed more than 10,000 families and delivered more than 100,000 hot meals to the Riverdale community.
“This initiative is the perfect public, corporate and community partnership, ” said SEED President and CEO Lisa Butler McDougal. “In the six months since the economic crisis began, SEED has distributed more than 150,000 pounds of fresh produce, 100,000 pounds of groceries, 75,000 hot meals and nearly 40,000 diapers to affected families. With Kaiser Permanente’s support we have the capacity to serve more.”
About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 12.3 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education, and the support of community health. For more information, please go to kp.org.
