When news of the magnitude of the COVID-19 situation spread across Ohio, people went a little crazy. Stores were sold out of toilet paper within a day (and have yet to be able to maintain adequate stock.) Eggs were sold out; even small backyard chicken operations were struggling to keep up with the sudden demand!
Most upsetting to us: Bread displays at the supermarket were turned absolutely upside down while people panic bought as much as they could get their hands on. Bread has always been a staple food, a symbol of life and the most basic sign of adequate nourishment for us and our families. Not everyone can afford to stock up; they live paycheck to paycheck and buy only what they need. Not everyone is in a position to safely venture to the supermarket to even attempt to purchase this basic staple item during a pandemic. Immunocompromised and elderly customers literally take their lives in their hands when they venture out to a store. (Please do remember to check on your neighbors!) It's serious. It's scary. It's real life right now.
On March 15, Kitschen Bakery LLC announced plans to start a donation-only porch pickup bread program beginning March 18. We were so thrilled with the response from the community! It turns out, bread really can bring people closer together, even during these times when we are physically so far apart!
On March 22, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced a shelter in place order for all Ohioans to help slow the spread of COVID-19. In response, we have limited our bread pickups to reserved one-hour time slots (think Kroger ClickList) to limit any unnecessary contact between our customers while they are on our little porch. We continue to offer Country White Bread on a daily basis, and we will bake the following to order: Focaccia (great with all that pasta everyone is making lately!), Cornbread, Sourdough Rolls and Honey Wheat Bread. All bread is still FREE. Contact us to schedule a pickup time:
Email: kitschenbakery@gmail.com
Phone: (330) 232-2909
Contact Form: kitschenbakery.com
We encourage you all to SPREAD THE WORD, SPREAD THE BREAD, SPREAD THE LOVE during these challenging times. Do whatever you can to (SAFELY!) help your neighbors and fellow humans right now! When this is all over, we want to look back with pride in the choices we made!
When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." - Fred Rogers