Click here to donate to the coronavirus food drive. Check out the Updates Page to get the latest information on our food drive progress.

The coronavirus pandemic has changed all of our lives, but it has disproportionally affected certain countries and communities. In Ecuador people do not have food, and everyday families desperately ask us for help. The coronavirus food drive is in response to this dire need. 

Ecuador has been hit extremely hard by the coronavirus pandemic, with death rates 15 times higher than reported and the healthcare system unable to keep up. Nationwide, a strict quarantine and curfew were implemented at the onset of the pandemic. These measures remain active in the coastal state where Mission Santa Maria works, and with so many relying on day labor for their livelihood, few have been able to earn any income since mid-March.

After families told us they only had limes to give their children to eat, Mission Santa Maria started a food drive. Though this is not a typical project for Mission Santa Maria, we knew we had to do something to help meet people’s most basic needs in this unprecedented crisis. It began with 100 families. Since the end of March the campaign has grown exponentially and Mission Santa Maria is now helping feed over 2,000 families in 18 towns in our state.

We rely heavily on local partners to make this project possible. Each town identifies the families most in need and provides Mission Santa Maria with a list. We then purchase large quantities of food from a wholesale distributor. Volunteers help divide the food into bags for each family. The bags are 30-45 pounds each and include rice, beans, lentils, salt, sugar, cooking oil, carrots, potatoes, flour, oatmeal, and pasta. Quantities are portioned based on family size, but the goal is to provide enough food to each family to sustain them for the entire week. Once a week the bags are delivered to every town for distribution.

Despite this growth, every week more families are asking for help. Give now and help families eat.