Coronavirus: USO Jacksonville expanding Healthy Military Meals Initiative

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Military families are increasingly turning to food banks for basic supplies since the pandemic began.

In Jacksonville, the number of food-insecure military families has nearly doubled.

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Before the pandemic, USO Jacksonville says 15% of active duty families in our area were food-insecure, and now the need is much greater.

“It’s hard; it’s really, really hard as a military spouse, it’s very difficult,” explains Kaya Richardson, who lives with her family on base at Mayport.

“My husband has been in for 10 years. He’s done multiple deployments, we have four children and even my mom lives with us, so we support her as well and it’s not easy. There’s a reason why I work.”

Unfortunately, like many others, Richardson lost her job due to the pandemic.

She was able to get a job working from home shortly after, but she says many haven’t been so lucky.

“We can’t just take any job because our sailors have to come home to us, they have to lay next to us. If we’re working at Walmart, we are touching one million things; we are around hundreds of people, that’s not really super-safe,” explains Richardson.

According to the charity Blue Star Families, 17% of military spouses reported having lost their job due to the pandemic.

USO Jacksonville says they’ve seen a greater need this past year.

USO Jax Regional Manager of Development Charlie Tramazzo explains, “It’s almost doubled, and so we’ve almost doubled in our capacity to serve the number of families that we bring in here.”

He says, “The need itself is because the military families, especially at the lower enlisted levels, (are) not making a lot of money. Those families that are not making a lot of money, even though they have different allowances for food and housing, they still have a hard time making ends meet.”

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Through their Healthy Military Families Initiative, with partners like Feeding Northeast Florida and Humana Military, they’ve been able to help 140 families each month with nearly $200 worth of food.

However, USO Jacksonville says the need is closer to 400 active duty families in our area.

“We piloted for a month in October 70 families every week, to try and double the number just to see is that enough, and honestly it wasn’t,” explains Tramazzo.

Richardson says USO Jax has been amazing.

“When they give us those groceries, it’s amazing. I’m able to put that money towards my mom or to sending my husband a care package if he’s gone. Every extra dollar helps.”

USO Jax is hoping to serve even more local military families. But in order to do that, they need more space.

That’s why they’re hoping to build a food pantry behind their building on Mayport Road.

Tramazzo explains, “We need to build this 2,400 square-foot building which is in the works. It will be a shopping experience. If you ever been to a stable pantry like Beam’s, that’s what this is going to be like, only really geared toward the military.”

If you would like to learn more about the program, or are looking for future partnerships, visit jaxuso.org or call 904-246-3481.

Volunteers can go to volunteers.uso.org (CFC#11381).

USO stepping up to help military families in need

Cox Media Group