I want to wish a Happy Mother's Day to all who have nurtured and cared for others by birth or by choice. I'm thinking of all of the mothers who inspire, encourage and are raising the next generation of agents of change. I also want to thank the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute whose team reimagined the Mother's Day walk of Peace today. The Peace Institute's founder Tina Chery understood-through the grief of losing her son Louis to senseless gun violence-that if we do not help each other heal from the pain of loss and focus on the roots of violence and injustice then we will have the absence of peace. If you are able to give today to the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute, please do. As violence continues to plague neighborhoods and the demand for their work and the need for healing continues. I think of this virus in the same in the same vein-the most effective public health response is a human rights response to ensure that everyone has their basic needs met.
As of today, there are 840 Cambridge residents who have tested positive for COVID-19 and 69 residents have passed away. Learn more here: https://bit.ly/2J2BnQj. There are 77,793 cases of COVID-19 in Massachusetts including 17,589 in Middlesex County. 388,389 tests have been performed and 4,979 patients have passed away. Learn more here: https://bit.ly/2LdO9wt.
Time Sensitive Request for Tomorrow
Food for Free has open shifts for grocery deliveries tomorrow, 5/11. If you are able to, sign up to help deliver groceries to Cambridge residents here: https://bit.ly/3dyVoLr.
Cambridge Updates
A reminder that if you wish to receive assistance from the Mayor's Disaster Relief Fund you must apply by this Friday, 5/15 at 5PM. You can learn more and apply here: https://bit.ly/35Pu3SM.
350 patrons have signed up for library cards since mid-March and there have been over 3400 digital checkouts. You can learn more about the resources that the Cambridge Public Library is offering here: https://bit.ly/2WDD2lG.
Multilingual resources are always available on the City of Cambridge's website. This includes translated information on city resources and about COVID-19. You can find them here: https://bit.ly/2wKXAzA.
State Action Updates
Governor Baker did not hold a press conference today.
Where to give
If you are able to give to others during this time, I encourage you to look to the following places that are working to help those most affected by COVID-19:
Mayor's Disaster Relief Fund: https://bit.ly/3bgTBJU
Cambridge Health Alliance: https://bit.ly/2vWegUB
Cambridge Community Foundation: https://bit.ly/33ImGeE
Food for Free: https://bit.ly/3afFuEE
Greater Boston Food Bank: https://www.gbfb.org/
Cradles to Crayons Emergency Essentials Fund: https://bit.ly/2WHOD4V
Enroot Emergency Immigrant Cash Assistance Fund: https://bit.ly/2y7bBIe
The One Chelsea Fund: https://bit.ly/2W6dGO7
As always, do not hesitate to reach out to me with questions or concerns at Marjorie.Decker@mahouse.gov.
Sincerely,
Marjorie