Helping others in time of need.
It’s a phrase that Ricardo’s Nursery, Downtown Lions Club of Long Beach and Puente Latino Association have been living for the past year through their bi-weekly food distributions in North Long Beach.
In May 2020, the three organizations joined forces to provide food for 30 families in need during the pandemic.
Within months the distribution grew to serve approximately 300 families a month.
On distribution Saturdays, it is not unusual to see people lining up outside the gate of Ricardo’s Nursery as early as 6 a.m.
According to a study conducted by UCLA, more than three million people in Los Angeles, Long Beach and Anaheim and across the state reported food insufficiency in their household during the first three months of the pandemic. This marked a 22% increase from the reported pre-pandemic rate.
See related: Food insufficiency rates increased in SoCal during pandemic, UCLA study shows
Ricardo Arrivillaga’s nursery was considered an essential business during the early days of the pandemic and was allowed to stay open.
“I’ve been working in the community for so long and the community’s always been there for me and now it’s time for me to give something back.”
–Ricardo Arrivillaga, owner of Ricardo’s Nursery
He quickly realized he wanted to use his open business to help those whose finances had been impacted by the pandemic and kickstarted the distributions in March 2020.
“I have to do this,” Arrivillaga said. “I knew that it was a problem and looking the other way was just not an option.”
Arrivillaga noted that when he began the distribution effort, other businesses, friends and customers began donating items.
“When they started to do that I knew that they could trust me to do it,” Arrivillaga said. “I’ve been working in the community for so long and the community’s always been there for me and now it’s time for me to give something back.”
A month after Lions Club joined Arrivillaga, the organization received a $5,000 grant from the Long Beach Community Foundation for COVID relief.
A surplus of food during a June distribution allowed the group to serve 100 additional families. The number grew to 150 families the following week. The original mission to help 30 families who needed extra support, for three months, had grown.
That same summer, Anthony Rendon, speaker of the California State Assembly, secured an emergency food pantry account at the LA Regional Food Bank for the organizations, further expanding the distribution efforts.
Fresh fruits, vegetables and other perishables were added to their distribution offerings. To date, approximately 90,000 pounds of food has been donated by the food bank. The organizations purchased an additional 30,000 to 40,000 pounds of food to keep up with demand.
Some of the other items people receive include beans, rice and bread among other items. Kirk Davis, president of Downtown Long Beach Lions Club, estimates each family or individual receives approximately 40 to 50 pounds of food in a single donation.
Thanks to a partnership with the Mayor’s Fund for Education, the distributions also include diapers and formula.
The project has persisted a year later thanks in part to the Long Beach Community Foundation grant’s expansion to $15,000, allowing more families to receive assistance.
According to Davis, over 3,500 families and 13,000 individuals have been served in the past year.
“We’re very appreciative of [Arrivillaga],” Davis said of the collaboration. “It’s been great for the Lions Club and for Puente because our main mission is being a bridge for the community.”
On Tuesdays, food is delivered to those who can’t attend the food distributions by members of the Puente Latino Association.
“It has been a pleasure to serve the community,” said Hilda Gaytan, president of Puente Latino. “Many of the people who have attended the events have become our friends.”
In addition to the distribution of items, the organizations have also given out PPE and other items from the health department, activity kits from the library, signed people up for the census and are currently helping people sign up for emergency rental assistance.
“Puente wants to thank everyone who comes to the distributions and has given us the opportunity to serve them,” Gaytan said.
For now, another two food distributions are scheduled to take place in June: one on Saturday, June 5 and the other on Saturday,June 19.
The organizations will continue their work in the community as Puente continues to sign people up for emergency rental assistance and Ricardo’s offers their community classes through the month of June including authentic Mexican folk crafts and a Oaxacan ice cream class.
To keep up with the organizations follow them on social media at @ricardosnursery @puentelbc and Downtown Lions Club of Long Beach on Facebook.
