One Civic Act

Today, I joined a Somerville Protest Against Evictions & Foreclosures , organized by CAAS and others. The Climate Coalition of Somerville cosponsored the event.

Today, I donated several hundred grocery bags to Project Soup, the food pantry run by the Somerville Homeless Coalition, and to Somerville’s Community Fridge. Really, I was redirecting the bags, because they were all donated to the Somerville Stands Together Food Drive I volunteered at earlier this month.

Today, I made a donation of books to More Than Words , which is so much more a used book store. More Than Words works with youth in the foster care system, court involved, homeless, or out of school to get them involved with different aspects of running a business. Great organization.

Today, I made a donation to Food for Free , an awesome organization that “rescues” food from grocery stores and restaurants, and distributes the food to those in need.

Today, I helped out with a food drive run by Somerville Stands Together. I brought over about 400 grocery bags plus several cases of food. I was going to volunteer, as well, but there were plenty of others helping out.

I’m helping out with an upcoming food drive run by the labor-centric Somerville Stands Together. Today, I picked up donations of grocery bags from about 15 households in Somerville. I also sanitized and organized all the donations to make them easier to transport.

Today, I made a donation to the Somerville Community Corporation, which is our local community development corporation. I took advantage of a favorable state program called the community investment tax credit .

Thanksgiving weekend calls for overeating, but there are so many families struggling with food insecurity, even more so because of the coronavirus pandemic. Today, I made a donation to the Community Foodbank of New Jersey.

Thanksgiving weekend calls for overeating, but there are so many families struggling with food insecurity, even more so because of the coronavirus pandemic. Today, I made a donation to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, which serves food pantries and families in need in Los Angeles.

Thanksgiving tradition calls for overeating, but there are so many families struggling with food insecurity, even more so because of the coronavirus pandemic. Today, I made a donation to the Somerville Homeless Coalition’s Project Soup food pantry.

A few years ago, I donated some excess building materials to the Boston Building Resources (BBR) and its Reuse Center, which makes reused building materials available to low-income homeowners who are renovating their properties. BBR is building a new Reuse Center, with ambitions to make it a net zero building. Today, I made a donation to the Next Gen Reuse Center campaign .

Two years ago, I invested some savings in CNote , an intermediary that channels investment to community development financial institutions (CDFIs). I increasingly believe that such place-based investments can have a real impact. Today, I channeled more savings into my CNote account.

I read an update this morning on the Somerville Cares Fund , the pandemic relief fund to help the most vulnerable in the city. I donated to the fund back in April. Spoiler alert: “In brief, ongoing need remains extremely high.” Today, I made another donation to the fund.

George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man, died in Minneapolis after being handcuffed and pinned to the ground by Derek Chauvin, a white police officer. Chauvin handcuffed Floyd and put his knee to Floyd’s neck, pinning him to the ground for nearly 10 minutes. Captured on video, the incident has inspired protests around the country, once again highlighting systemic racism and the grossly inordinate numbers of black men killed by the police. Today, I donated to the Lake Street Council , a Minneapolis nonprofit that advocates for the Lake Street business community. This is an area filled with businesses owned by people of color, and where there’s been a great deal of property damage from the Minneapolis protests. The Council is running a fund to help rebuild the area. Today, I also signed a change.org petition , with almost 10 million other signatories, demanding justice for George Floyd from the prosecutors.

In many parts of the world, the spoken word is the most effective means of communicating. That’s why Amplio’s Talking Book device , a very simple voice recorder, is so important. It enables governments and global development organizations to share knowledge with the world’s hardest to reach communities. And it’s so important to reach those communities now with essential information on the coronavirus and how to stay safe. Today, I made a donation to Amplio (which used to be called Literacy Bridge).

I’ve made a donation to, and connected with, the Mutual Aid Medford and Somerville (MAMAS) group . Today, I made another donation, in response to a fundraising campaign .

I recently connected with the Mutual Aid Medford and Somerville (MAMAS) group. Today, the new captain of our neighborhood pod reached and I connected with him. He’ll hopefully connect with a core group of neighbors so we can stay in touch and support one another. I also made a donation to MAMAS, to go toward a community member in need.

Today, I made a donation to the Somerville Cares COVID-19 Fund . The fund will provide emergency funding to Somerville residents and Somerville workers, regardless of immigration status, to help cover basic needs including, but not limited to, food, medications, rent, utilities, childcare, and other basic necessities. It’s hosted by the United Way and administered by the Community Action Agency of Somerville (CAAS).

During the COVID-19 pandemic, some households have shifted to buying groceries online. However, people in need are still forced to go to the grocery store, because the SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) only allows you to purchase groceries in person. Having groceries delivered is crucial for the health of many SNAP recipients who are older or have health issues. The USDA has a pilot program in five states that allows recipients of SNAP to get groceries online. Today, I signed a petition to add Massachusetts to the states that allow SNAP recipients to order groceries online to protect our most vulnerable neighbors.

For the Somerville Homeless Coalition, the coronovirus has a dual impact. On the one hand, demand for its services has gone up, because so many people have found themselves out of work. On the other hand, they had to cancel their gala, a major fundraiser for their operations. So more work to do, with less money. Today, I made a donation to the Somerville Homeless Coalition .