For Immediate Release: June 14, 2018
Contact: Rachel Poplack | rachelp@healthtrust.org | 408.513.8706
San Jose, CA – On Tuesday, June 12, 2018, the San Jose City Council approved a one-time allocation of $225,000 from its Essential Services Reserve funding to support The Health Trust Food for Everyone efforts that increase healthy food access for older adults.
Over the last six months – with funding from the City and in collaboration with Loaves and Fishes and other partners – The Health Trust expanded access to Meals on Wheels, congregate meals, and brown bags resulting in over 2,000 meals for residents of San Jose Districts 4 and 9.
The new allocation of $225,000 will be used to continue these efforts and to expand them for residents of District 7. Needless to say, Councilmembers Lan Diep, Don Rocha, and Tam Nguyen were instrumental in getting these funds approved by the Council, as was the Silicon Valley Council of Nonprofits for assisting The Health Trust with its advocacy efforts.
“We are grateful and proud to partner with the City of San Jose and other local community based organizations to increase healthy food access for low-income older adults in San Jose,” said Michele Lew, CEO of The Health Trust. “With advocates like Councilmembers Lan Diep, Don Rocha, and Tam Nguyen, and with support from the Council, we can find a sustainable solution for increasing healthy food access to the estimated 30,000 low-income older adults living in San Jose.”
In addition to the one-time allocation, the City Council also directed the City Manager to co-convene, in partnership with The Health Trust, a stakeholder group tasked with developing a longer-term plan to improve food access for older adults. The stakeholder group will address San Jose’s geographic “food deserts,” the need for meals at the Vietnamese American Community Center, alternatives to food distribution at Tully Community Ballfields and St. James Park, innovative service enhancements, expanding commercial kitchen capacity, and increasing efficiency and coordination among funding partners.
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About The Health Trust
The Health Trust is an operating foundation founded in 1996. Our mission is to build health equity in Silicon Valley. We believe everyone should have the opportunity to be healthy – especially the most vulnerable. To that end, we provide direct services, fund community-based organizations whose work aligns with our mission, and advocate for policies and initiatives that help advance our mission. To learn more, please visit healthtrust.org.
About Food for Everyone
In March 2016, The Health Trust released Food for Everyone, an assessment of healthy food access among low-income seniors and individuals that are homeless in San Jose. The findings from this report have led to the development of new efforts to make food accessible for the aforementioned populations. Learn more.