Food parcels that never stop

Walking to the United Synagogue’s (US) head office on a frosty Wednesday morning, I had no idea what to expect. Upon arrival, I was greeted by a small army of very friendly, masked volunteers, already hard at work packing food and toiletries.

Food poverty is not something I really associate with the Jewish community. Yet volunteers were packing parcels for families in Elstree, St John’s Wood, Bushey and Hampstead. Every corner of north-west London is touched by this cost of living crisis.

Since March 2020, the US has been providing food and toiletries to just under
200 families in the community every week. As the cost of living crisis bites and bills soar, the number of people needing this service is expected to grow – and grow.

The now-essential service started by accident, Michelle Minsky, the US’ head of Chesed, explains. Every Pesach, the movement would provide needy families with a kosher food parcel. However, in March 2020, as people lost jobs and hid in their homes,  demand for food continued to grow, so the US continued to provide it.

Need never stopped, so the programme never ended. The US expects the service to run indefinitely and is even moving to a bigger facility in Bushey.

Minsky confesses that the process has been streamlined since its start. It has set up production lines and come up with nifty tricks to help with packing, such as resting half-filled food parcels on chairs, so volunteers don’t have to keep bending down while packing.

The whole process seemed very impressive. Bags are packed with ready-made kosher dinners, dried goods, fresh food including fruits and vegetables, cleaning products and toiletries. Volunteer drivers then collect the food and drop the bags straight to people’s front doors, preserving the anonymity
of recipients.

Speaking to the volunteers, who were giving up their Wednesday to help those in need, it was clear they wanted to give back to the communities that had served them so well over the years.

Minsky explains that the US understands it has a new responsibility to support its members. No one should be left to starve.

Frankly, it is simply unacceptable that our next-door neighbours are debating whether they can feed their families or heat their homes. This is a choice no one in the UK should have to make.

The touching testimony from food parcel recipients really highlights the importance of this service and the work these volunteers do.

The US is hosting an event next month to fund the food packing programme and, from someone who has viewed this operation from the inside, I can say with confidence that it is a really worthy cause.

It is clear that there is a real crisis in the UK. It is ordinary, everyday people, with ordinary, everyday families who are struggling.
So it is ordinary people who must step up to help them.