AUSTIN, Tex. – The Austin Convention Center Department (ACCD) is involved with two local community programs in the Eating Apart Together Initiative and the Dell Medical Face Shield Project.
“In the spirit of aiding our local communities, ACCD staff gives its unbounded support,” said Trisha Tatro, ACCD interim director. “We are looking to help our community any way we can, and in cooperation with local organizations we can streamline the assembly process by providing space and staffing to make this happen.”
Changes in the food system caused by COVID-19 have hit people and families experiencing homelessness especially hard. To help everyone stay well and safe, the City of Austin and community organizations created the Eating Apart Together (EAT) Initiative to source and deliver food to those in need.
ACCD is providing space and people power to package food which is then delivered by outreach organizations across the city.
Following the first drop of shelf-stable food from the Central Texas Food Bank, ACCD staff packages more than 1,000 bags for the week in eight hours.
The Austin Convention Center (ACC) will continue to host the packaging and distribution of food to organizations as the initiative grows and changes to meet people’s needs through the evolving crisis.
Face Shield Project, is an Austin-based volunteer organization manufacturing and assembling face shields for healthcare workers and first responders at the ACC. This is a partnership between the local companies, the City of Austin, and the UT Dell Medical School with 30 volunteers operating in shifts between April 15 and April 27, with the goal to assemble 30,000 face shields in two weeks.
