In This Harshest Weather, Help Us Feed Our Neighbors Help Us Provide 200 Nutritious Hot Meals Everyday Through The Season "Pack A Sack" At Your Place To Provide Nutritious Breakfast & Lunch Dear Family, These winter days are so tricky! For so many of us, it's all about making new winter memories, having hot chocolate, kids playing with snow, sledding, making snowmen and families bonding around fire places with warm meals and drinks. New coats and winter gears, indoor fun activities or having more movies times in cozy warm family rooms is a norm. But unfortunately, that's not the reality of hundreds of people in our own neighborhoods. At our warming center, I am seeing so many good people suffering everyday because they can't afford to have their own place to live. They don't have enough to have a meal, let alone warm nutritious food. Last week a gentleman was severely injured in a road accident and later died as he tried to cross the road after midnight in front of our center. His wife in a wheel chair screamed for help but it was just too late. I am sorry for his tragic death and for her loss, and I am constantly thinking about what we can do better to help more people like them. Columbus is currently facing a shortage of approximately 200,000 housing units in relation to its population. As a result, many individuals and families—especially those at the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum—are left without stable housing. Some are forced to live in their cars, seek refuge in homeless shelters, or, unfortunately, find themselves on the streets. It's important to note that many of these individuals are not struggling with addiction, criminal behavior, or other personal issues. Rather, they are simply unable to afford housing in a market where available units are in short supply. This housing crisis is a challenge that requires all of us to come together and support solutions, while we wait for the City of Columbus to develop and implement a long-term plan to address this pressing issue. At MY Project USA, we are hosting up to 40 guests at our youth center 24/7. We have moved our bigger, heavy furniture to our warehouse and have been converting our lower level into a sleeping zone with 40 beds each night. In the day time, the guests stay warm in our cafeteria. They also see case managers who are trying to help them secure jobs and housing by the end of this season. In addition to providing a shelter to these guests, we are also providing meals to 200 guests at different sites. This number might go up as the number of guests are increasing each day. Unfortunately, we are given only $10 to provide 3 meals per person per day. While this little amount can keep them alive, it's not enough to feed them well. We want to do better. This is the part where you can help tremendously!!! Just like our MY Iftar Kitchen drive for providing hot meals during Ramadan, we have created sign ups for you to contribute to our warming center meals effort. Whether it’s donating cooked meals, grocery items, monetary funds or helping us pack the hot meals or lunch bags, every bit of assistance is crucial. I know OUR VILLAGE can do THIS! Together, we can provide nutritious and plenty to each of our warming center guests just as we always do for our own families and children. In Solidarity with Youth & Families, Zerqa Abid, Founder, President and Executive Director, MY Project USA | 
