Liliana, Arturo, Carolina, and Delia
Nestled in Oakland’s Fruitvale Transit Village, Unity Council is one of the anchor agencies serving the local community. The organization’s holistic programming runs the gamut, including food security; affordable housing; career, financial, and small business support; and programs for children, youth, parents, and seniors.
At the center of Unity Council’s Food Security Program is their ACCFB-supplied free grocery distribution, followed by their hot meal service. Every Wednesday, between 100-200 individuals and families pick up fresh produce, healthy proteins, and pantry staples from the market-style distribution. Most of the people are either Latinx or AAPI and come from the low-income Fruitvale neighborhood. Many are moms with young children.
According to Carolina Quintero, the Food Security Program Coordinator, the food distribution is serving two functions: access and finance.
“Many of the residents in the Fruitvale community are low-income or unemployed, and with inflation, groceries are so expensive,” said Carolina. “So we are removing both the financial barrier as well as the access barrier to fresh food.”
For Esperanza Bautista, the food distribution is helping her two-year-old son Mateo grow. “He goes through a lot of milk right now, and it is so expensive when you buy it at the store,” she said. “My husband has work, but with things so expensive, it doesn’t cover all of our needs. So if we can get food here, it helps us save money to be able to use it toward other urgent expenses.”
Following the food distribution, the Food Security Program also includes a hot meal service. Unity Council purchases 100 meals at $11 a pop from local restaurants and feeds primarily unemployed individuals. The service not only provides sustenance to residents struggling with hunger, but it is a boon to small mom-and-pop restaurants.
Unity Council also offers workshops in healthy eating. Participants receive a $20 Visa gift card as a draw, and then are taught about nutrition, the food distribution and meal service, and CalFresh. People leave with not only some money for groceries, but with resources for food and an appointment with a Unity Council staff person to apply for CalFresh.
The Food Security Program also holds gardening workshops at a local farm and has one-time $200 food and wellness grants for people struggling with food insecurity. Rounding out the program is the Community Advisory Board (CAB), which consists of seven Spanish speakers and seven English speakers.
“Getting community input is critical to our program,” said Carolina. “We rely on people with lived experiences to advise the Council on making improvements. We are always looking for ways to better serve Fruitvale residents.”
Carolina herself has lived experience with food insecurity, living in a food desert in Hayward. “Where I live you have to own a car to get food,” she said. “What I love about Unity Council is that we are removing barriers to getting food. Right now, no questions asked. The results are immediate, and that’s a rewarding feeling.”
