LVMC Nurses Donate to Foodbank in Honor of Nurses Week

The nurses from Lompoc Valley Medical Center, the Comprehensive Care Center, and all Lompoc Health sites donated $3,000 today to the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County in recognition of Nurses Week.

The check was presented by a group of Registered Nurses on Wednesday, the start of the 2020 Nurses Week.

It was accepted by FoodBank Development Manager Laurel Alcantar. The donation was handed out at the Dick DeWees Community and Senior Center, the site of the weekly Brown Bag food distributions for Lompoc Valley seniors.

In making the donation, the nurses recognized the tremendous support the hospital district has received during the COVID-19 pandemic from the community in the form of Personal Protective Equipment, signs in yards, produce, food, wine, letters and more.

“We have such an amazing and compassionate community – unlike any other that we’ve been a part of,” said Chief Nursing Officer Yvette Cope. “Our nurses are proud and honored to give this donation to feed so many.”

Cope noted that each $1 donation enables the Foodbank to feed up to 8 people in the community.

Foodbank representatives said the organization was grateful and humbled by the generosity of the donation.

“The generous funds that they have raised for the Foodbank will allow us to continue adapting to the expanded need our communities face as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Alcantar said. “Since this March, we are distributing double the amount of food that we normally do. This help is so vital to our organization and the Lompoc community.”

In addition to the Brown Bag distribution for seniors, and the senior home delivery program, the donation will aid the six “Food Safe” distribution sites serving the Lompoc Valley community. Since the pandemic began, the Foodbank has completed almost 10,000 home deliveries to seniors in need countywide.

Alcantar said the Foodbank has provided community members more than 2.3 million pounds of healthy groceries and fresh produce since March 9th, twice as much food as the same period in 2019.

“In order to meet the demand at our SAFE food distribution sites, our volunteers are packing 6,000 grocery bags per week,” she said.

This year, Nurses Week carries an added significance – the World Health Assembly designated 2020 as the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife. At LVMC, Lompoc Health and the Comprehensive Care Center, the nursing staff will be honored this week in various ways.