The nonprofit Chow Train has been cooking meals for Meals on Wheels, keeping our senior fed. We publish this compassionate news roundup every Wednesday afternoon. If you want to get the news sooner, follow us on Twitter @compaassionNET1. And don’t forget to use the hashtag #compassionateSA so we can find YOUR compassionate acts!
Found in the Rivard Report, 18 March, 2020
County Plans Interest-Free Loans for Small Businesses; Court, Jail Procedures Adjusted
They are working with microlender LiftFund to deploy $5 million in interest-free loans for small businesses.
Found in the Express-News, 18 March, 2020
Bexar County retains medical expert; emergency restrictions extended to June 15
“If we value human life, we should do everything we can to prevent our community from getting to that point.”
Seen on KENS 5, 19 March, 2020
Going beyond the game: NISD coaches helping distribute meals to students while schools remain closed
District officials estimated that 27,000 meals were handed out on the first day of distribution, which will continue each weekday until students return to school.
Seen on KSAT 12, 19 March, 2020
SeaWorld San Antonio donates over 6,000 pounds of food to San Antonio Food Bank
The food filled two box trucks and consisted of fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy products and an assortment of beverages intended for visitors over Spring break.
Seen on KSAT 12, 19 March, 2020
Methodist Healthcare Blue Bird Auxiliary down hundreds of volunteers
Directors ask seniors 65 and older to stay home for their own safety; they are hoping that new volunteers 18 to 64 will step up to help.
Found in the Sentinel, 18 March, 2020
San Antonio Zoo Donates Food
“We are navigating uncharted territory amidst this temporary closure, and we are more than happy to help and hope that others will do the same with the resources they have. It’s what makes San Antonio special.”
Found in the Express-News, 19 March, 2020
Giving big crucial to curb COVID-19 pandemic
As a public health crisis morphs into an economic crisis, one source of uplift is seeing San Antonio businesses working to help the most vulnerable in our community.
Found in the Express-News, 19 March, 2020
Amid COVID-19, bump the shake; connect in new way
Think of it as a handshake challenge. More of us need to practice new ways of connecting and respecting without shaking. Be transparent and genuine. Offer a fist or elbow bump instead. Focus on good eye contact. Ask that extra question to show you care and respect the other person.
Found in the Rivard Report, 19 March, 2020
While We Are Apart, Reading Can Help Us Better Connect With Each Other
Reading literature over time does help us become more responsive to others, more willing to let them count in our lives.
Found in the Rivard Report, 19 March, 2020
Area Foundation, United Way Start San Antonio Coronavirus Response Fund
The San Antonio Area Foundation is handling donations from philanthropists and organizations, while the United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County has set up a website for individual donations of $25 or more.
Found in the Express-News, 19 March, 2020
‘We’re in a new reality’: San Antonio fundraising campaigns will support people, nonprofits impacted by coronavirus
“We haven’t had a community emergency like this since perhaps World War II. There are so many great people working in the philanthropic world to step up and make a difference, and this will help support them.”
Found on KENS 5, 19 March, 2020\
A nonprofit had to send home 99% of its volunteers. Here is how you can help.
“We’ve had to tell volunteers who are over 55 not to come down here. Almost 99% of the CAM volunteers are probably 70 and over, so to lose that population while we’re in the middle of a crisis is major.”
Seen on WOAI 4, 19 March, 2020
Metro Health COVID-19 hotline grows from 2 lines to 13 due to heavy call volume
“As a public servant, in the back of your mind, you always know that when the city needs you, where ever you are pulled, you are going to be there.”
Found in San Antonio Magazine, 19 March, 2020
Big Give Launches Emergency Relief Fundraiser During COVID-19
McAninch said the Big Give site transitioned into an emergency relief site at the request of Mayor Ron Nirenberg. Big Give, a 24-hour online giving day, was originally scheduled March 26 and has been postponed.
Seen on KENS 5, 19 March, 2020
‘Big Give SA’ becomes emergency relief fund for over 500 SA area organizations
The effort will help more than 500 area nonprofits which are experiencing strains on their services and operations because of the pandemic.
Found in San Antonio Magazine, 19 March, 2020
Restaurants Help Provide Pantry Staples During Coronavirus
Several San Antonio restaurants are stepping up to offer a solution after closing their dining rooms.
Found on Kens 5, 19 March 2020
Mi Tierra goes from restaurant to temporary market to keep community fed
The Cortez Family opened a pop-up grocery market in the restaurant’s parking lot to help the community.
Found in the Express-News, 20 March, 2020
San Antonio food pantries address growing need to provide groceries during coronavirus pandemic
“When there is so much anxiety and fear in the world right now, we are not caving to fear. We are helping.”
Found in the Express-News, 21 March, 2020
Worried about the coronavirus? These San Antonio residents banded together to help others. Here’s how you can, too.
“I think that’s the one positive thing that will come out of all this. … We need each other to survive.”
Found in the Rivard Report, 20 March, 2020
VIA Suspends Fares in Midst of Coronavirus Pandemic
“Maybe people are trying to get to a food distribution center, or their kids’ school because they’re giving out lunches there. There are the people who always needed the service, and the people who need it now because of what’s happening.”
Seen on KSAT 12, 21 March, 2020
Local musician uses talent to ease customers at grocery stores
Classical guitarist George Gaytan is bringing calm amidst the chaos at HEB.
Seen on KSAT 12, 20 March, 2020
Neighbors answer nurse’s call for help making homemade face masks
A nurse practitioner at Texas Oncology asked people who know how to sew on social media help make face masks for her and her staff.
Seen on WOAI 4, 20 March, 2020
Innovation takes over San Antonio as people look to help how they can
“In our small way this is what we can do.”
Seen on WOAI 4, 20 March, 2020
SeaWorld donates 45 cases toilet paper to military medical trainees at Fort Sam Houston
“We want to be good stewards of the community and we jumped at the chance to help.”
Found on San Antonio Things To Do, 22 March, 2020
Tim Duncan Is Helping Virgin Island Students Get Home
Tim Duncan has partnered with Silver Airways to help displaced students who are either need to return to or are stranded in the Virgin Islands due to the current pandemic.
Found in the Express-News, 22 March, 2020
Food wholesaler donates food to San Antonio restaurant workers laid off because of the coronavirus pandemic
“Instead of the virus going viral, we hope that a little bit of love goes viral.”
Found in the Current, 22 march, 2020
San Antonio Brewer and Distiller Ranger Creek Making Free Hand Sanitizer to Keep Up With Shortage
“We’re asking people who come by to be people who have the most need — health care workers and older people.”
Seen on KSAT 12, 22 March, 2020
KSAT Community phone bank raises more than $40,000 for Meals on Wheels S.A.
Meals on Wheels will now be able to give each of the 5,000 seniors in its program an emergency food kit that costs $7 and can help feed a senior up to four days.
Found in the Express-News, 25 March, 2020
New San Antonio poet laureate Andrea ‘Vocab’ Sanderson is on the job
Her first prompt for adults was an invitation to write poems about social distancing; another sought poems of gratitude. She’s asking children to write a version of their favorite fairy tale, putting themselves in the action.
Found in the Express-New, 25 March, 2020
Relief fund for San Antonio artists impacted by COVID-19 cancellations set up by the city and Luminaria Artist Foundation
Artists can apply for up to $600 in relief for lost revenue incurred because of cancellations of events slated to take place between March 13 and April 19 due to the National Emergency Declarations.
Seen on KENS 5, 25 March, 2020
Alamo Colleges creates ‘COVID-19 Student Impact Fund’ to help students in need
The foundation is allocating up to $25,000 to provide immediate relief for those students with the greatest need.
Seen on KSAT 12, 24 March, 2020
‘I’m not willing to sacrifice anyone’
Mayor Nirenberg: “We expect to be aggressive, to remain swift with the action, and we’re going to do everything we can to get through this as quickly and as effectively as possible.”
Seen on KSAT 12, 24 March, 2020
Nonprofit, local restaurants team up to feed laid off hospitality service workers for free
“It’s for anyone who is doing anything in a hotel or a restaurant or a bar. We want to make sure that we’re feeding them hot meals everyday.”
Found in the Current, 25 March, 2020
Local Leaders’ Treatment of Latin-American Residents in the ’30s Offers Lesson on How We Should Respond to the Current Crisis
We need our leaders — public and private, for profit and nonprofit — to build a contemporary relief and support system, one that recognizes that we here are in this together.
Heard on Texas Public Radio, 24 March, 2020
Coronavirus Is Contagious, But So Is Kindness
Our brains can’t process these dystopian conditions, particularly as they are global. The feeling of there being no place to hide, no place to be free of the threat, affects our emotions. It’s hard to be rational.
Found in the Express-News, 25 March, 2020
How one San Antonio woman helped create a viral online movement as the coronavirus spreads
“I know everyone is scared. I have found this unbelievable sense of kindness and community through this hashtag. I hope others will, too.” #HighRiskCovid19
Found in the Express-News, 25 March, 2020
Nirenberg: Slow spread of coronavirus, then rebuild and recover
In the darkest times, San Antonio is known for shining the compassionate light of humanity.
