Coronavirus: Grocery project comes to rescue of Vancouver’s Chinatown elders, alone and scared to go out for food
- A charity scheme to help Chinese elders, who are suffering ‘high anxiety about having to go out’ amid the pandemic, has been flooded with cash and support
- The scheme to deliver a weekly supply of fruit and vegetables is hoped to reach about 200 needy elders in Chinatown
Even before Covid-19, the elders of Vancouver’s Chinatown knew all about isolation, having been marginalised by poverty, language, familial dislocation and simply living in one of the city’s most socially challenged neighbourhoods.
But some now have one less thing to fear – thanks to a campaign to deliver free groceries to them during the coronavirus pandemic.
Those behind of the Chinatown Care Packages scheme said some elders had been scared to go outside to get food, while others had limited means and mobility. Canadian authorities have been telling all residents to stay at home as much as possible for about the past three weeks.
The scheme provides needy Chinatown elders with a weekly delivery of fruit and vegetables. Masked and gloved volunteers began deliveries on Tuesday.
