Feed the Fight SD supports both local restaurants and hospital front line medical providers

La Jolla’s Kathryn Munoz is battling the COVID-19 pandemic by buying food from small local restaurants and delivering it to the front lines: doctors, nurses, and other medical personnel at hospitals around San Diego County. Munoz created Feed the Fight SD and has raised more than $27,000 in donations for food since April 2 through Facebook, GoFundMe, and Venmo.

At least a dozen similar organizations have popped up around the country to support hard hit restaurants and hospitals during the crisis. Munoz was inspired to start a local effort after seeing a news report about Feed the Fight in Washington, D.C. “We all feel so helpless in this pandemic beyond social distancing and washing our hands,” says Munoz. “I realized this was something I could do, leveraging contacts and making an impact.”

Munoz, who was a member of Las Patronas, has received an assist from other nonprofits including Thrive Animal Rescue, whose executive director Nicole Velasquez chaired last year’s Jewel Ball for Las Patronas. That event raised money to buy a van for Thrive, which pairs rescue pets with appropriate homes. The van now is being used to deliver food to hospitals. gofundme.com/f/feed-the-fight-sd