The Salvation Army, Allentown Corps, has seen almost triple the requests for food assistance since the COVID-19 pandemic started.

Fortunately, community members and volunteers have donated time and resources to help meet the need.

One family in particular, who has a long association with The Salvation Army, is helping in multiple ways.

Patricia Rosario, her mother, and her three daughters, Sierra, 16; Arianni, 10; and Sophia, 7; were volunteering at The Salvation Army soup kitchen prepping and serving food before the pandemic struck.

The children talked with those who came for the meal, sitting and eating lunch with them.

When COVID-19 hit and the soup kitchen changed its operation from sit-down meals to distributing meals to go, Rosario continued to help by donating surplus food from her employer’s meetings.

“We have a lot of meetings, and they order a lot of food,” Rosario said. “There are times when there is so much food left over.

“My director knows I am involved with The Salvation Army and asked if I wanted to donate the extra food there.

“Now, anytime we have meetings and there is food left over, I take it and drop it off at The Salvation Army so it can be used at the women’s shelter.”

Rosario’s employer is Lehigh Valley Health Network, an organization that partners with The Salvation Army.

“They have been really good to us this year,” said Deirdre Govan, resource development manager. “Thanks to LVHN, we received $6,000 in gift-in-kind products to support us during COVID-19.

“Also, they awarded us a $3,600 grant to support our pantry effort for families.”

Rosario’s administrator asked her if she would like to coordinate a donation from her coworkers, and she readily agreed.

“I said, ‘absolutely.’ I sent an email to my team and asked if they wanted to help,” Rosario said. “Everyone donated, and we dropped the donation off to The Salvation Army.”

Rosario’s long association with The Salvation Army began when she was a child.

She remembers how difficult life was for her family due to her father’s drug addiction.

“We lived in New York. It was me, my two older sisters, and my mom and dad,” Rosario said. “My dad was a drug addict and, at one point, our neighbors actually came upstairs to tell us a drug deal went bad, and people were looking for my dad.

“That day, my dad left the country. That same day, we left New York with the clothing on our backs and came to Pennsylvania, not knowing anyone.”

Thankfully, someone reached out to help the family.

“We were literally on the street when a car drove by and a lady said, ‘Can I help you guys?’ My mom cried and told the driver what happened. The lady took us to The Salvation Army, where they helped us get into the shelter.

“We were in the shelter for three months. They provided us with checks to get food for lunch.

“They helped my mom through a lot of programs. They also invited us to the church, and that’s how we children got involved.

“We went to church every Sunday, and we ended up doing the Sunbeams and the music program.

“We never stopped going, even as we got older. That’s how we became a part of The Salvation Army.”

Rosario said some good things have come out of the pandemic.

“A lot of families are confined in the home together, and it forces them to communicate with each other and spend more time together, which I think is awesome,” Rosario said.

“Also, a lot of people united and began helping organizations help other people.”

One of those organizations is especially dear to Rosario.

“I will always give back to The Salvation Army because they have a special place in my heart.”

To give to The Salvation Army, go to salvationarmy.org.