McAuliffe Visits Mount Vernon Area Food Distribution Site

MOUNT VERNON, VA — Terry McAuliffe, the former Virginia governor who is seeking another term, visited a United Community food distribution site in the Mount Vernon area Tuesday.

The visit happened at Mount Vernon Woods Elementary School, one of four mobile sites that serve 400 families every week in addition to 350 families at United Community's food pantry. United Community recently marked one year of providing food distributions in the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

McAuliffe and United Community neighborhood ambassadors helped distribute a truck-full of produce, shelf-stable food, diapers and hygiene products to families. Some of the families waited in line for over an hour to receive the much-needed items.

Ending childhood hunger was a key initiatives of Terry and Dorothy McAuliffe during their time as Virginia governor and First Lady, respectively. The administration helped schools serve millions more meals as part of a partnership with No Kid Hungry.

"For too many Virginians, food insecurity still affects all aspects of life," McAuliffe said. "We’ve got to do more to help them rebuild their lives — starting with distributions like this one."

That particular food distribution happened in the Janna Lee census tract, a federally-designated food desert and a "food swamp," or an area with a higher concentration of fast food options compared to healthier options. In addition, United Community says this area has eviction rates two to three times higher than the county average, and residents' lifespan is 10 years younger than the Fairfax County average.

"The Janna Lee census tract has the highest poverty rate in Fairfax County — one in five families lives in poverty,” said United Community president & CEO Alison DeCourcey. "Since the COVID crisis began, United Community focused its efforts on preventing a hunger crisis in the middle of a public health crisis."

Longtime Janna Lee resident Yolonda Earl-Thompson first started the neighborhood's food distribution in March 2020. It started with distributing food to around 20 people from her front door. Now she is in charge of the Communities of Opportunity initiative with help from over 20 volunteers and neighborhood ambassadors.

"As community members, we have the power, privilege and proximity to do something now,” Earl-Thompson said. “We are committed to getting things done and being the change we want to see in our community."

As a nonprofit serving southeastern Fairfax County, United Community provides a variety of services aside from food distribution. For more information, visit unitedcommunity.org.