Home delivery service helps Smyrna family survive challenges

January 20, 2022

Lack of transportation, chronic health conditions, plus a limited fixed income – the negative trifecta — add up to a family struggling with food insecurity. Smyrna resident Polesha, her son, and her brother face these daily challenges. Thanks to the Food Bank of Delaware’s home delivery service through Amazon, they don’t have to figure out how to get to a grocery store or how to pay for enough food to feed themselves.

Polesha receives some disability income, but her car died in March 2017. “I had a vehicle, but the motor died,” she said. Unless she can find a ride, she can’t go to our mobile distributions to pick up food in Dover or Wilmington. “I have wanted to go to the mass distributions,” she said, noting that the family does not live in walking to any of the town’s three supermarkets. “Sometimes a neighbor helps us out,” she added.

Her son is not employed, but is looking to get back in the workforce, she explained, while her younger brother deals with anxiety. “Some employers have issues with transgender people,” Polesha explained. Other family members aren’t in a position to assist due to health issues.

“I’m the only one, and the money I get goes for rent and utilities. It’s not enough to buy food for three people. It’s not easy; these two guys really have an appetite,” Polesha said.

The weekly food delivery has been a lifeline. “It’s a really cool program for people like us struggling to get proper nutrition. It’s really nice. The Food Bank does a phenomenal job.”

To learn more about home delivery options through Amazon and DoorDash, please click here.