Eating Apart Together Initiative

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Consultation has concluded

Connecting Austin's homeless community to food and resources during COVID-19.

What difference can a meal make? In Austin, the Eating Apart Together (EAT) Initiative has provided regular access to food to help those experiencing homelessness stay safe and meet their needs during the pandemic response.

With many restaurants and bars closed and fewer drivers and pedestrians around the city, people experiencing homelessness lost access to many of the resources critical to their survival. Outreach staff heard the call for help and partnered with the City of Austin to develop a delivery system of both shelf-stable foods and prepared meals to

Connecting Austin's homeless community to food and resources during COVID-19.

What difference can a meal make? In Austin, the Eating Apart Together (EAT) Initiative has provided regular access to food to help those experiencing homelessness stay safe and meet their needs during the pandemic response.

With many restaurants and bars closed and fewer drivers and pedestrians around the city, people experiencing homelessness lost access to many of the resources critical to their survival. Outreach staff heard the call for help and partnered with the City of Austin to develop a delivery system of both shelf-stable foods and prepared meals to meet the varied need of the diverse community.

In less than five months the EAT Initiative provided more than 400,000 meals along with thousands of masks, rolls of toilet paper, hygiene supplies, bags of dog food, and fliers about COVID-19. The City of Austin sources and coordinates production of the bags/meals before they are distributed to people experiencing homelessness by partner agencies, nonprofits and churches.

EAT shows what is possible when communities come together to take care of each other. This page shares the stories of the people whose lives have been changed by organizing, delivering, and receiving food through the initiative.

EAT in Action

This is a space to share the stories of sharing food.

If you have been part of the EAT Initiative in any way, we invite you to post your experience - just one or many - to show our community what it looks like. 

Thank you for sharing your story with us.
CLOSED: This discussion has concluded.
  • Share Thanks to the Austin, Texas Packers! on Facebook Share Thanks to the Austin, Texas Packers! on Twitter Share Thanks to the Austin, Texas Packers! on Linkedin Email Thanks to the Austin, Texas Packers! link

    Thanks to the Austin, Texas Packers!

    almost 4 years ago

    EAT bags don't pack themselves; they are assembled by the dedicated event staff who have, over 25 weeks, assembled more than 34,000 bags of food to go out into the community. Their awesome work is voluntary and critical to the success of the operation. Thank you to the team for showing up each week to make Austin a better, safer city!

  • Share If COVID doesn't get me, hunger will on Facebook Share If COVID doesn't get me, hunger will on Twitter Share If COVID doesn't get me, hunger will on Linkedin Email If COVID doesn't get me, hunger will link

    If COVID doesn't get me, hunger will

    by Kim.Caldwell, almost 4 years ago

    I met Sergio in May, 2020 under I-35 while he was picking up an EAT bag. He was talking to the staff from The Other Ones Foundation (TOOF) who were distributing food at their Mobile Hygiene stop. Through the noise of wind blowing and cars driving overhead I could hear “If COVID doesn’t get me, hunger will.”

    While I’d spoken and written about the dramatic changes in access to food, hygiene and Internet since COVID-19 hit, hearing it like this was a punch in the gut. It was also motivation to work harder, because if that’s what we were doing... Continue reading