By Tom Tracy - Florida Catholic

MIAMI | To ease the growing economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Upper Keys, St. Justin Martyr Parish continues to offer drive-through food distribution at its parish pantry in Key Largo. 

Residents can access the site each Monday from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. near the parish hall. Parish volunteers are facilitating the distribution, according to Marliese Ljuba, parish administrator at St. Justin Martyr. 

The foodstuffs are being supplied by the Key West-based Star of the Sea (SOS) Foundation, a client-choice food pantry which was started in 2006 to increase the health and well-being of low-income individuals and families in Monroe County.

“We’ve been getting pretty much everything from fresh vegetables, rice, beans, cereal, baked goods and last week we had chickens and pork roasts, all from the SOS Foundation,” Ljuba said, adding that toiletries and cleaning supplies are generally not available. 

Since travel to Monroe County has been closed off to non-residents and non-essential personnel, the parish food pantry program is serving mostly residents, who are asked to present a driver’s license and remain in their cars while volunteers load the donated food. 

Last week the pantry served over 300 families from all over Monroe County,  Ljuba said. She noted the growing concern over the sudden unemployment triggered by social distancing recommendations and business closures.

“Down here in the Keys it is even harder. Everyone has been laid off: the restaurant workers, the house cleaners — anyone in the tourism and service industry,” she said, though St. Justin Martyr Parish and its pre-school program have not laid off any staff. 

Masses are being live streamed on social media, and the church is urging its members and religious education students to download a free MyParish app to stay up to date with announcements. Parishioners requesting special Mass intentions for the sick are encouraged to call the parish office. 

Florida's Surgeon General Scott A. Rivkees recently stated his opinion that social distancing measures would need to continue until the creation of a coronavirus vaccine.

“Until we get a vaccine or a medication that can treat this it may not get any better, and there are the mental health issues that will come into play here,” Ljuba said.