By Velia Salazar, Staff Reporter
The coronavirus pandemic has been a stressful situation for many of us. We might feel helpless, but there are ways we can help during this situation.
The first way you can help is by staying home. Yes, it sounds so simple, but this is seriously a big way we can help. There isn’t a vaccine yet and we might not have a vaccine until months or even years later. If you don’t work, please stay home and only go out when it is necessary. By not leaving your house, you are preventing yourself from getting the virus and infecting those that live with you. The parties can wait and will still be there once all of this is over.
Another way you can help is by donating blood. The process to sign up is easy, and it only takes a few minutes. The American Red Cross is currently facing a shortage of blood, and they need healthy donors who weigh at least 110 pounds to donate their blood or plasma. The whole donation process takes less than an hour, and by donating, you are helping at least three people. The satisfaction of knowing that you helped someone will always stay with you.
If donating blood isn’t for you, then another way you can help is by helping those that are the most vulnerable to the virus. Whether it is your grandparents, parents, siblings, friends or even your neighbors, you can do their grocery shopping so they won’t get out of the house and leave their stuff outside of their door.
All For Good is an organization that helps people search for events and projects near you from volunteer websites. It helps you look up ways to volunteer or even start an organization.
Over 20 million Americans have filed for unemployment, which means there are a lot of people without money to buy food. LA Food Bank is helping to feed families. By going to the website, you can donate money to the organization or sign up to volunteer to distribute food and other essentials to those in need. They don’t accept walk-ins so make sure you sign up before going. If you’re someone that is in need, you can click here to find a food bank near you.
Restaurant Workers’ Community Foundation is another website where you can donate money to. This is to help out those individual restaurant workers facing economic hardships due to the coronavirus. It provides zero-interest loans to businesses during the closure and will help them reopen once the crisis passes.
During this time in isolation, it has made people feel extremely anxious and alone. You can become a Crisis Counselor and help those that need help mentally. The Crisis Text Line is asking for volunteers. The service includes free 30-hour training on how to answer texts from people that reach out.
The last way you can help out is by helping yourself. How do you expect to help someone when you aren’t taking care of your health? Watching the news and reading news articles can be one of the most stressful things to do right now. We have to stay informed, but don’t obsess yourselves by constantly watching the news. During this time, you can do so many indoor activities and get to know your family members even more.
