South Lake Tahoe's Bread & Broth seeks volunteers as needs increase

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - For over thirty years, Bread & Broth has provided hot, nutritious meals for those facing food insecurity in the South Lake Tahoe community. They provide food on Monday and Friday evenings, and, since 2015, weekend food bags for K-8 Lake Tahoe Unified School District students.

But in wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, the organization has modified its services by packing and distributing bags of food and groceries rather than serving the hot meals. Bags include simple meals, fruits and vegetables, bread and dairy products as available. The Bread & Broth 4 Kids weekend food bag program has continued by coordinating with the LTUSD meal distribution program and delivering on Fridays.

With the COVID-19 crisis, more people are seeking the services offered by organizations such as Bread & Broth.

“Our numbers have basically doubled over the past two weeks,” explained Carol Gerard, director of Bread & Broth. “We are serving so many new community members, those who have recently become unemployed or have had their hours at work reduced. These folks are so appreciative of the South Shore’s generosity and the availability of groceries during this difficult time.”

With the increase in numbers of those being served, Bread & Broth is looking for both financial donations as well as additional volunteers. Volunteers are needed both on Monday afternoons ( 3:00 p.m.- 6:00 p.m) and on Friday afternoons ( 2:00 p.m.- 5:30 p.m.). Volunteers will be used to pack bags of food and groceries that will be handed out for dinner guests.

Those interested in volunteering should contact Beth Wallace at bethwall53@gmail.com.

Donations may be made online at breadandbroth.org. or mailed to Bread & Broth, ℅ St. Theresa Catholic Church, 1041 Lyons Ave., South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150.