COVID-19 Community Resources
A collection of resources to support the Central Sierra community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Last update: 11/18/2020.
Unemployment Resources - OnwardCA.org is a new one-stop resource for the people of California impacted by job loss during the COVID-19 pandemic: https://onwardca.org/
Information from the California Department of Public Health: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/covid19
Information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/
Information for California Workers During COVID-19 Crisis: Filing for Supplemental Pay due to Impacts on Wages: https://ucanr.edu/sites/SLO/files/321854.pdf
Information for Undocumented Workers: https://legalaidatwork.org/blog/relief-funds/
Information from local county governments: Amador County - Calaveras County - Tuolumne County - El Dorado County
Emergency Food Assistance
Apply for CalFresh online (also known as food stamps or SNAP): https://www.getcalfresh.org/
Learn about the new Pandemic EBT program:
Information about Pandemic EBT
CalFresh EBT is now accepted online at WalMart and Amazon:
Program Information for EBT Online
Retailer Information for EBT Online
Food Banks & Other Emergency Food Sites
ATCAA Food Bank (Tuolumne County): https://www.atcaa.org/food-bank
Resiliency Village in partnership with the Jamestown Family Resource Center (Tuolumne County) - Families can complete a food assessment online, and a box of needed food for the following day will filled for pick-up or delivery: https://resiliencyvillage.org/
The Resource Connection Food Bank (Calaveras County): https://trcac.org/the-food-bank/
Interfaith Food Bank of Amador County: http://feedamador.org/
And a comprehensive list of resources for Amador (contact organizations directly for the most updates schedules and information):
Food Security Programs in Amador County
Food Bank of El Dorado County: https://foodbankedc.org/
And the El Dorado County Food and Housing/Utility Assistance - COVID 19 Resource Guide
Food Resources for South Lake Tahoe: https://sites.google.com/view/community-resource-page/home
Updated Food Resources_SLT
Asistencia Alimentaria Actualizada en South Lake Tahoe
Assistance for Women, Infants & Children (WIC)
WIC programs are currently able to provide services by telephone, even for newly enrolled clients. They can also upload benefits onto the WIC card remotely.
The Resource Connection WIC (serving Amador and Calaveras Counties)
It is unsafe to make infant formula at home. Contact a food bank or your local WIC agency if you cannot access infant formula. More information from the American Academy of Pediatrics: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/formula-feeding/Pages/Is-Homemade-Baby-Formula-Safe.aspx
Information on Breastfeeding during COVID-19 (English) (Spanish)
Meals on Wheels & Senior Meals
A new statewide hotline connects California seniors with a one-stop shop to answer their questions and get assistance during this crisis: 1-833-544-2374
Many, but not all, senior meal sites in the Central Sierra are currently offering to-go meals. Call your local site for updated information on schedules and offerings.
Common Ground Meals on Wheels (Amador and Calaveras Counties): https://www.commongroundseniorservices.org/meals-on-wheels-amador-calaveras-counties/
Amador Senior Center COVID-19 update: https://www.amadorseniorcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/covid-update.pdf
Sierra Senior Providers Meals on Wheels (Tuolumne County): http://www.sierraseniorproviders.org/senior-services/meals-on-wheels/
El Dorado County Senior Nutrition Services COVID-19 update: https://www.edcgov.us/Government/HumanServices/senior%20services/Pages/senior_nutrition_services.aspx
And information on pick-up meals for seniors: https://www.edcgov.us/Government/hhsa/Documents/Congregate%20Mealsites%2c%203-13-20.pdf
School Meal Sites
Check with local schools for the most updated information, but most schools in the Central Sierra are offering meals while schools are closed, either on a regular schedule or on demand. If your local school/district is not on the list below, call to see if they are preparing meals for children who need them. Most school sites can serve all children (0-18), regardless of age or which school they attend. This includes preschool aged children, private school students, and homeschool children. Known exceptions are noted below, but check with your local school to make sure.
From Dairy Council of California, a searchable list of School Meal Sites Providing Free Meals throughout California: https://www.healthyeating.org/schoolmeals
Information for some of the largest school meal programs in the Central Sierra:
Amador County Unified School District with new sites - 5/5 (in Spanish + Updates )
Calaveras Unified School District: Drive-Thru Meals AND Meals Delivered by Buses
Mark Twain Union Elementary School District
Vallecito Union School District
Bret Harte Union High School (meals currently for students of BHUHS only)
Tuolumne County (all districts)
Food Safety & Food Storage
- Handwashing and COVID-19
University of California Food Safety Information: https://ucfoodsafety.ucdavis.edu/
Information on Food Safety Tips for Infant Feeding
Food Storage
SavetheFood.org has a comprehensive guide on how to store different kinds of food: https://savethefood.com/storage
UC Davis has a guide for Storing Fruits and Vegetables for Better Taste
Consult these resources from the Marin/SF Food Bank for help decoding what different code/date labels on food mean, and how long certain foods can safely be stored.
Code-Dates-Extensions_New_English
Code-Dates-Extensions_New_Spanish
Cooking at Home
EatFresh.org has hundreds of simple and healthy recipes, many of which can be made with limited ingredients: https://eatfresh.org/ (in Spanish: https://eatfresh.org/es)
Explore the USDA's Seasonal Produce Guide, which has information to help you learn about and cook fruits and vegetables in season: https://snaped.fns.usda.gov/seasonal-produce-guide
Cooking with Potter the Otter has fun recipes for young children: https://issuu.com/first5kids/docs/cookbook_final_online
PBS has a collection of recipes from around the world for cooking with kids: https://www.pbs.org/food/theme/cooking-with-kids/
Slow Food USA's "Good" curriculum includes many recipes designed to be made with kids, and hands-on sensory activities to learn about food: http://slowfoodusa.org/wp-content/uploads/Good-Curriculum-with-Intro-Low-Res.pdf
ChopChop Magazine includes recipes and activities that families with young children can participate in together: https://issuu.com/chopchopkids/docs/spring_20_english_highres
Food Hero has recipes ideas and resources for healthy eating: https://www.foodhero.org/ (in Spanish: https://www.foodhero.org/es/node)
The EatFresh.org Mini Course is an online class that teaches how to eat for health, save money on groceries, and cook easy, tasty meals. Sign up for free and take the class whenever it's convenient: EatFresh_Mini_Course_Flyer
Activities for Children & Families
Gardening with Kids
Slow Food USA's "Clean" curriculum is a flexible resource that includes tips on starting a garden, activities, worksheets, recipes, and more: http://slowfoodusa.org/wp-content/uploads/Slow-Food-USA-Clean-Curriculum-Low-Res.pdf
Kidsgardening.org has easy gardening activities to do with kids: https://kidsgardening.org/news-kidsgardening-offers-easy-parent-and-kid-activities/
Physical Activity Resources
Safely access local parks and open spaces: Guidance On The Safe Usage of Open Spaces During COVID-19
CATCH at Home PE resources: https://www.catch.org/pages/health-at-home
Cosmic Kids Yoga videos: https://www.youtube.com/user/CosmicKidsYoga
GoNoodle active games for kids: https://www.gonoodle.com/
Hip Hop Public Health songs: https://hhph.org/repository/#filter=.videos
Open PE YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAwgRLHq2cGUv67w4oU9R0A/videos
Shape America PA resources for teachers/parents: https://www.shapeamerica.org/covid19-resources.aspx
Learning Activities
Story Time from Space (astronauts on various missions in space read popular children’s books while floating about, and the videos are edited and shared with kids way down on Earth): https://storytimefromspace.com/
Kahoot! online learning: https://kahoot.com/
Make healthy eating fun with FoodPlay: https://www.youtube.com/user/foodplay
Ag in the Classroom has a set of eLearning courses, virtual farm tours, and other resources to learn about agriculture: https://agclassroom.org/eLearning/ and https://agclassroom.org/student/