The nonprofit OUR Center responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by altering how it provides services to Longmont’s unemployed and hungry while stepping up its efforts to keep families fed and sheltered, the agency’s executive director said this week.
From March through September, the OUR Center, which stands for Outreach United Resource, provided 1,375 vouchers totaling $745,000 to help clients cover rent and utility payments, Marc Cowell said during a video conference this week.
By contrast, the agency gave out 961 vouchers totaling $345,000 in 2019, he said.
“That just shows how the pandemic hit families in Longmont,” Cowell said. “And we still believe the pandemic, no matter what happens in the future, will affect families for months, maybe years.”
Cowell credited OUR Center’s staff members and volunteers with pivoting quickly when the pandemic’s restrictions began closing businesses and agencies in March. Cash, food and clothing donations also flowed into the nonprofit.
“I remember that morning in March, everything in the community began shutting down and the whole society began shutting down,” Cowell said “I still remember our team gathering in our cafe and we were thinking ‘What will we do next?’
“But everybody responded quickly and we slowly got our services rolling,” he said.
OUR Center closed its building and community closet, which provided clothes for people who needed jackets, shoes and other apparel. The agency also changed its food services, nixing sit-down meals for breakfast and lunch.
Volunteers and staffers began packaging food and clothing items for families and handed them out outside of the center, Cowell said. Groceries are provided through a drive-thru service from 9 a.m. to noon Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and from 1 to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Lunches also are provided via a drive-thru from noon to 1 p.m. every day.
Classes and in-person meetings were suspended, Cowell said.
But caseworkers continued to call clients via telephone or computer, he said, and helped with housing and unemployment issues.
“We tried to figure out creative ways to make sure we continued to support people to the best of our abilities,” Cowell said.
In all, the OUR Center doled out 25,000 hot meals from January through September, averaging nearly 140 meals a day, he said.
More than 10,000 food boxes totaling 665,000 pounds of food were distributed from March through September, Cowell said.
Gay Mayer, an OUR Center supporter, asked Cowell how the agency monitors those who receive voucher assistance, noting the huge jump in requests versus last year.
Cowell said each case is judged differently.
“A lion’s share of voucher assistance is just for one month, it’s rare when someone asks for more than a month,” he said.
Also pitching in to help the OUR Center were community groups, including the Longmont Rotary Club, which donated “thousands of dollars,” Cowell said. The St. Benedict Health and Healing Ministry set up a tent in the OUR Center parking lot to offer free medical aid, he said.
The Longmont Community Foundation also provided essential support, he said.
Boulder County also funded several community agencies, including the OUR Center, to help with housing, utility payment assistance and other basic needs, according to an Oct. 9 news release.
Cowell said the OUR Center was able to respond effectively to COVID-19 because of the backing from the community.
“We received a tremendous amount of support during this crisis,” he said. “The community support has been amazing.”
