I have some extremely important news to share with you.

Through our ongoing meal box distribution program that has reached 18 locations and has provided over a quarter million meals, we recently became aware of an opportunity that could more than double the number of our distribution locations by the end of this month.

I can't share all the details with you right now as we are waiting final confirmation on the plans, but I am expecting this one opportunity will significantly expand our coronavirus crisis outreach. And we will be reaching particularly hard-hit areas where unemployment is high and resources are scarce.

I'm both in awe and humbled by what the Lord has done and continues to do.

On Monday, our Virginia community kitchen served its 100,000th meal since the beginning of this coronavirus crisis. 
Later today, we will reach a total of 300,000 Mercy Chefs meals -- including the meal box distribution and our response to the Chattanooga tornado -- since this crisis began. It makes me think of these words from Ephesians...

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us..." --Ephesians 3:20

The numbers are still staggering, yet sadly we are getting used to it. Last week, another 3.2 million people filed for unemployment, bringing the total since the outset of this crisis to 33.5 million.

We have now reached levels of unemployment not seen since the Great Depression. Across the country, people are lining up in their cars for food. In some places, the cars start lining up before sunrise to make sure they get help before supplies run out.

Mercy Chefs has been providing thousands of meals nearly every day during this crisis. We are in our eighth week, and the need isn't letting up. This week, through our partners in South Dallas, we helped provide thousands of children and their families with food. We are seeing a similar story unfold at Mercy Chefs distribution sites across the country. In Tennessee and Florida and South Carolina and even on the island of Maui -- where Hawaii's unemployment rate topped 37% a few weeks ago -- your support is helping to feed thousands of folks every week.

I want to share a few of the "thank you" letters we received recently from elderly folks who have been shut in by the coronavirus crisis. Your support made this possible. See below.  --Gary

"They really are a life saver..."

Those words came from a dear woman living in a senior center who has been receiving Mercy Chefs meals during the coronavirus crisis. She continued...

"...and so nourishing. Being shut in... it has meant so much. In this awful crisis it is a wonderful thing to know there indeed are folks who care and go out of their normal routine to help others!" (emphasis in the original)

Another lady, who is 89, sent us a beautiful thank you card addressed to, "Wonderful People" which says:

As I noted to you earlier today, some national leaders have designated today as a special "Giving Tuesday" to help non-profits that are going the "extra mile" in response to the coronavirus crisis. Mercy Chefs is one of the non-profits that has been asked to do even more during this crisis -- far beyond anything we budgeted for this Spring.

If you haven't done so already, we could use your help today as we start our EIGHTH CONSECUTIVE WEEK of coronavirus crisis outreaches. To make your gift directly to Mercy Chefs, go here -- and see below for more details.

God bless!

Gary LeBlanc

P.S. We will count every online gift through tomorrow toward this special Giving Tuesday response. If you prefer to send a check, please get it in the mail this week and we will count it as well. Go here for mailing instructions and to give:

Click here for more information from our previous update.

This is going to be a DIFFICULT WEEK. Truthfully, our team is getting worn down. Today marks SEVEN CONSECUTIVE WEEKS of wall-to-wall outreach in response to the coronavirus crisis. The meal total during this time will soon reach a QUARTER MILLION, including our Chattanooga tornado response. This is all unprecedented and so is the wear and tear on our team.

Our kitchen team in Virginia is continuing to put in heavy overtime hours to meet the seemingly ever-increasing demand -- even after we expanded our staff. Fatigue is setting in. We had to take a few people off line for a few days to recover from minor injuries. Our distribution centers across the country are still seeing urgent needs, but the cost of the food supplies is increasing.

For many, desperation is setting in. Thirty million people recently lost their jobs. And the calls and emails asking for help are flooding into our office. Please see below.  --Gary

It's hard to even open our Mercy Chefs email some days. Since we are in so many communities now, folks are hearing about Mercy Chefs and reaching out to us for help.

One woman who contacted us shared that she has a very serious health condition, but her doctors suspended the treatments during the COVID crisis. Her family had just moved into a new apartment a few weeks ago when her husband lost his job. Now they are struggling during their state's lockdown just to put food on the table. She's asking if we can "help with a few meals" -- what she calls a "hand up not a hand out" -- as they navigate this difficult season. We are working on getting some help to her family.

On Tuesday, I shared with you how our coronavirus crisis outreaches have already provided over 150,000 meals to hurting folks across the country, including kids in beleaguered South Dallas like these precious children. 

I wanted to make sure you saw their faces. This is why Mercy Chefs exists -- to "feed body and soul" and use meals and nutritious food as a means for bringing hope to hurting people, and put smiles on the faces of kids who are caught up in world events beyond their understanding.

As you know, the entire Mercy Chefs team has been running with all our engines "wide open." Today, we finally paused long enough to total up the number of meals your faithful support has reached during this time.

I've been doing this a long time, but I was stunned when I saw the totals...

In the past 40 days, your support of Mercy Chefs has helped this ministry to distribute an amazing 199,095 meals! Here's the breakdown:

• 40,185 meals during our Chattanooga tornado response
• 75,000 meals from our Virginia community kitchen across a 100+ mile radius encompassing at least ten cities
• 83,910 through our 18 coronavirus crisis response distribution locations across the country

There is now great concern that parts of one of the hardest hit neighborhoods in Chattanooga may have to be bulldozed and condemned. It's heartbreaking. The devastation from the EF-4 tornado was that immense. For nearly two weeks now, our team has been serving in and around that community, providing hot meals to victims and volunteers. When these families couldn't return to their homes, many were moved to nearby hotels. They were so grateful for Mercy Chefs meals that they actually requested that we keep providing meals for their families. So we did.