Neighbors helping neighbors

Since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Henderson-Hopkins school has partnered with the Maryland Food Bank and World Central Kitchen to provide weekly food distributions at the K-8 school in East Baltimore. Since September, the partnership has fed an average of 285 people each week, with 75 people visiting the site every Friday to pick up food for multiple families.

This month, the Center for Social Concern is pitching in, with students heading to the the school each week to help volunteers assemble packages of food for community members. On Friday, March 11, when university photographer Will Kirk visited Henderson-Hopkins, five Hopkins affiliates joined two grandparents, a parent, and a community member to prepare nearly 2,000 pounds of food for distribution. The canned goods, frozen meals, bread, and breakfast items including eggs, cereal, and pancake mix given out that day helped to fill the gaps for families living near the school—a community lacking grocery stores that has been designated a healthy food priority area by the city.