Nicky Winter

“When you talk about the emotion of hunger and food scarcity, it was really impactful to see these families that came to get food… They found themselves in this really unusual situation where it's either- I go stand in the food line or I seriously cannot feed my family. Seeing that was very emotional.”

Nicky Winter is the Executive Director of ALEA Bridge, the homeless outreach and service provider which covers the Waialua, Hale’iwa, Wahiawā, Mililani, ʻAiea, Waiau, Pearl City, Waipahu, ʻEwa, and Kapolei regional communities of Oʻahu. Photographer Dave Homcy, caught up with her at a food distribution at Ka’ala Elementary on August 14, 2020. The following is the transcript of our conversation with Nicky on July 22, 2020.

ALEA Bridge is so broad and incredible, could you give us a little picture of the organization and what was happening pre-COVID, specifically around food.

I was reading that question, what life was like prior to COVID, I sat there and I really had a hard time remembering what life was like pre-COVID, because it came on so fast, so quick and so intensely. It had everybody scrambling to try and adjust to this new way of life. I was really trying to remember what life was like pre-COVID, and I just can't. It's just beyond me to grasp that.

We are a homeless services provider, founded in January of 2016, to address the needs in Central O’ahu. Our primary focus in the homeless services region is region five, which consists of Mililani, Wahiawa, and the North Shore. We found that in that area, there was a lack of services and a lack of resources to address the homeless issue. So that's why we were founded here. We are the primary homeless services provider for this region- the way I like to term it is ‘we go from streets to permanent housing and everything in between’. We don't necessarily provide all the services ourselves. For example, we don't have a mental health arm or a substance abuse arm, but in those instances, we will partner with other organizations in the community and make our referrals and placements to their programs. We primarily focus on things like assisting clients to get what they need to be able to get into housing.

Things like IDs, being able to get mail, social security cards, EBT so that they can eat. That's a big one when you're homeless. Getting a marriage certificate, a birth certificate, medical insurance, all of those services- if you're homeless it can be really hard to navigate through that. So, we help them get the items that they need, and then we help to facilitate referrals working with programs to get them into housing. Pre COVID, we focused on outreach. We also partnered with other organizations on the North Shore to do food distribution in the community primarily for the homeless, but also for the low-income, the kūpuna, the aunties and uncles that are on a fixed income.

Volunteers await recipients at the 8/14/20 Covid-19 food distribution, a collaboration between ALEA Bridge, State Representative Amy Perruso, HAM Produce, Hawai’i Food Bank, and the Queen Liliʻuokalani Children’s Center. Photo: Dave Homcy

A few months prior to COVID, we started a program where we worked with the Hawaii Foodbank, the YMCAs and the Title I schools in the area. We worked with these organizations to get the food from the food bank, take it to the school, and help them bag it. They would also have a food pantry for their students. That was a really great program. It was really awesome to see it take off, and I'm hoping once school gets back into session, that we can continue to work with them.

“So many people were laid off and so fast and so quickly, and people were just like, ‘Oh gosh, how am I supposed to feed my family? How do I get food on the table?’”

August 14, 2020 food distribution at Ka’ala Elementary School. Photograph by Dave Homcy

What changes have you made to adapt to our current situation?

When COVID hit, it was an immediate shift from solely doing outreach to providing food to the community because so many people were laid off and so fast and so quickly, and people were just like, “Oh gosh, how am I supposed to feed my family? How do I get food on the table?” Even though we had already had food programs, it was a real shift to really focusing on food programs after COVID. It's really hard to grasp just because it was such a drastic change and a change that I think happened so intensely that it really took your breath away.

It was so intense. I remember I kept saying, “One week is a decade in COVID”. Or, “That was a week ago, everything's completely changed since then.” You know, it was so crazy.

It really was. As an organization, we really just had to stay fluid. We couldn't make any set in stone plans because you'd never know the next day everything was different again. It was this rolling emotional ride that you just had to be able to stay fluid, stay dynamic, just to be able to adjust quickly to address the current situation, because it was just changing so fast. As you know, when you talk about the emotion of hunger and food scarcity, it was really impactful to see these families that came to get food. A lot of them had never been in a food bank before- they had never stood in line to get food. And they found themselves in this really unusual situation where they're like, you know, it's either I go stand in the food line or I seriously cannot feed my family. And so seeing that was very emotional.

“It was this rolling emotional ride that you just had to be able to stay fluid, stay dynamic, just to be able to adjust quickly to address the current situation because it was just changing so fast.”

food distribution13.jpeg — **What are the vulnerabilities in the food system that became clear during this crisis?**

Oh, so many things really came clear, during COVID-19, but specifically to food. I read once that 90% of the food to the state is imported. Then here you have a pandemic that hits and if shipping to the state had stopped, what would that look like? On top of the fact that people were out of work? That was scary to think about. And so I think trying to figure out a way to become sustainable here in the islands, rather than be so dependent on imported food. We have such rich land to be able to grow food and we have farmers that are already doing it. I think we'll be focusing more on working with the farmers and the people that are working the land and creating more programs like that so that we can be resilient and sustainable within our own. Granted, we're always going to have to import some, but I think bringing that number down from 90% would really help in the future. I think that was a vulnerability.

Another vulnerability that came to light, through one of our food programs, was the impact the shutdown had on our disabled community…They told us, “We don't have food, and we know we can go get food, but how do we get there?”

Another vulnerability that came to light, through one of our food programs, was the impact the shutdown had on our disabled community. Although there were food banks offering access to food, they had no way to go and get the food. And so they were stuck in a situation where they had no choice but to shelter in place. They told us, “We don't have food, and we know we can go get food, but how do we get there?” There were like four or five referrals like that. So what happened was we ended up taking the food bags and the food boxes and delivering them to the homes of these people. It really made me think about how many people across the state are in that situation, those that relied on public transportation and then suddenly were stranded.

That's a very vulnerable place to be. Or imagine being somebody who was working and was able to put food on the table and take care of your family and then bam- Covid hits, you're out of a job. You're like, how am I going to pay for everything? And I can't feed my kids. When I try to picture just feeling that emotion, that's a very vulnerable place to be. And then, not just vulnerable, but to be able to have to admit that, Hey, you know what, all these years I was able to take care of you kids and put food on the table, but in light of this pandemic, I can't feed you anymore. I have to go stand in the food lines. That's a really emotional thing to have to come to terms with if you've never done it before. It was really eye-opening for me as well, to watch it.

“BAM- Covid hits- you're out of a job. You're like, how am I going to pay for everything? And I can't feed my kids. When I try to picture just feeling that emotion, that's a very vulnerable place to be… That's a really emotional thing to have to come to terms with”

Social distancing professionals, August 14, 2020 food distribution, shot by Dave Homcy

What was your experience in serving your SNAP/ EBT clientele?

Getting our clients SNAP/ EBT is something that we do on a regular basis. So for us in our community, we didn't necessarily see an uptick because, you know, we do case management. Sometimes they'll come and say, ‘I lost my card. Can you help me get a new one?’

So we didn't really see an uptick in EBT. What we did see, is that they had changed the policy on how they were going to be distributing it. You couldn't come into the office. So they were going to process and send all the cards through the mail. We did see a lot of anxiety from our clients regarding that, and we were getting a lot of calls on a daily basis from people looking for their cards.

Obviously, because we have a food program, we would pack food bags and take them out some food and let them know anytime you need food, all you have to do is pick up the phone and call. We're more than happy to work with you, but we didn't necessarily see an uptick cause we were working with them on obtaining these benefits anyway.

food close up.jpeg — **Have you seen an uptick in the population of newly unsheltered people, due to COVID, in the region that you're serving?**

We haven't necessarily seen an uptick in people coming into homelessness, but we've seen encampments grow. Prior to COVID, in our area, they were able to stay in the beach parks here and there. Once they shut down all the beach parks, all these people that had been staying in the beach parks, they had nowhere to go. What happened was they started doing sweeps. We saw the more hidden encampments grow exponentially. We had one encampment that started with, I believe it was like 13 to 15 people and it grew to over 50 people because of the sweeps. So for us, we didn't necessarily see a lot of people coming into homelessness, but we did see certain encampments grow just because of the enforcements and the sweeps and the closures of the beach parks.
Farm to Familes USDA protein box, Photo by Dave Homcy

“We haven't necessarily seen an uptick in people coming into homelessness, but we've seen encampments grow…Once they shut down all the beach parks, all these people that had been staying in the beach parks, they had nowhere to go”

I read that they’re predicting a 40% increase in homelessness, and that is a scary, scary number. It absolutely terrifies me to think about a 40% increase in homeless camps. That projection is based on things catching up, like the extra money from unemployment going away and bills piling up.

I know there are organizations and individuals that are pushing to see if maybe we can come up with some kind of landlord/tenant mediation program where once the eviction moratorium is lifted, that they have conversations to give tenants a chance. The emergency money eventually is going to end. It's not like we're going to have CARES money forever. Also, with tourism not being opened back up yet- that's going to start to take its toll as well. All the workers from the tourism industry, that are still out of work. Their bills are piling up. We don't know what to do. That's a very scary thing to think about.

I'm imagining where you are located and I know there are significant State ADC lands in the area that had highly publicized sweeps of encampments.

Anytime anybody or any organization or property owner does a sweep, and people get displaced, especially in this region, we see the impact 100%, because we're the primary homeless services provider. They're definitely going to be our clients. So we did have clients that were displaced from those sweeps. We recently partnered with another property owner, to help them, with an encampment of 50 residents.

It's heartbreaking and it's something that I'm torn with because as property owners, they have the right to say that you can't be on this property because there's a liability. If there's a crime that happens on that property, it's the property owner's responsibility. But on the same note, how do we really solve the bigger problem? Because if we kick them off of this property, then they move and the next property owner is like ‘you can't be here’, and then we kick them off of that property. Are we really solving the problem or are we just kind of just kicking the can around?

“How do we really solve the bigger problem? Because if we kick them off of this property, then they move and the next property owner is like ‘you can't be here’, and then we kick them off of that property. Are we really solving the problem or are we just kind of just kicking the can around?”

Nicky Winter of ALEA Bridge and State Representative Amy Perruso prepare to serve 300 packages. Photo by Dave Homcy

“We went from a previous height of 2200 pounds of food [distributed] in November 2019 to 44,000 pounds of food in May 2020”

Here’s something we found really interesting. In November 2019, we gave out 2200 pounds of food at our food distribution. In December 2019, our monthly total was 877 pounds of food. Just to give you an idea of the recent scale, in May (2020) we distributed 44,000 pounds of food, and then in June, we did another 35,000. So we went from a previous height of 2200 pounds of food in November 2019 to 44,000 pounds of food in May 2020. That's incredibly crazy to think about the scale in the number of people that we served, in partnership with the Hawai’i Food Bank.

What role have partnerships played in getting through this challenging time?

Back in April, I recorded a video, talking to exactly this point, because I was so impressed and inspired by the community organizations coming together, and people talking to each other. Historically, when you think about services, a lot of organizations traditionally work in silos. Over the years, I could see that that model changing, and people were starting to come out of their silos and working together more. It was so inspirational to see during COVID all of these organizations and partners really coming together. I was really grateful and thankful for that.

It was so inspirational to see, during COVID, all of these organizations and partners really coming together. I was really grateful and thankful for that.

food distribution.jpeg — **Speaking of positive things that have come out of COVID, are there changes happening now that you'd like to see stay in place as we move through this?**

Oh, absolutely. The working together and the partnering- I definitely want to see that continue. In my experience, it was not only the partners and other organizations that were coming out, but community members were stepping up to say, ``What can we do to help?’ And really seeing all of that, everybody taking a share of the responsibility and coming together as a community, for me that was really a big one and I hope that sticks around a long time after COVID.
Volunteers from Wahiawā Lions Club prepare food bags for distribution in partnership with ALEA Bridge, Hawaii Food Bank, HAM Produce, Representative Amy Perruso, and Queen Lili’uokalani Children’s Center. Photo by Dave Homcy

“COVID, it's forced us to really take stock of our lives and what matters. We really got back to the family and the values, helping each other and taking care of each other.”

One thing that I changed in my personal life, after the stay-at-home mandate began to lift- me, my son and my daughter, we go running for miles, a couple of days a week. Had it not been for COVID, I wouldn’t have done these things because I'd be at meetings every night. COVID, it's forced us to really take stock of our lives and what matters. We really got back to the family and the values, helping each other and taking care of each other. For me that was a really great thing to see. Hearing the kids laughing on the streets again. We all just, I think, got so caught up in working and our daily lives that we forgot to take time to do those things. COVID kind of forced us to have to do those things. So I hope that sticks around.

You can only do so much laundry. You can only cut the grass so many times. So then my daughter wanted to grow a garden. Why not? We went and we bought everything we needed. And then she was like, okay, so can I make an herb garden and a vegetable garden too, instead of just flowers? We're like, why not? So we helped her put it all together. The other night I want to say it was like three nights ago, she was able to harvest cucumber from what she grew. And she would’ve never, ever have eaten cucumber before, but because she grew it, she ate it. She's like, ‘Oh, that's so cool, mom. Like, you know, I can go out and pick food and serve it.’ So we made a salad out of it, and she was so proud that she could contribute in that way. That was really amazing.

“I hope that we really take it seriously and double down on ag because I mean, it's definitely super scary. The barges didn't stop. I always thought food security is about being prepared for the barges stopping. Security is actually about making sure all of us get to eat. And it's not a level playing field at all.”

What do you hope to see 5 years from now?

Like I said, working more with the farmers and local products and produce and things like that. I definitely want to see more kids with their hands in the dirt growing things because my daughter really taught me that it makes a huge difference. Not just in like being able to pick food and eat it, but also in their emotional and mental wellbeing. If you could've seen the look on her face when she picked it, that's huge. That enlightened feeling like I grew something and I can feed myself. So I really would love to see more kids that have their hands in the dirt.

I hope that we really take it seriously and double down on ag because I mean, it's definitely super scary. The barges didn't stop. I always thought food security is about being prepared for the barges stopping. Security is actually about making sure all of us get to eat. And it's not a level playing field at all.

How do you see this time as being described in the history books of the future?

I think COVID really forced everybody to completely rethink everything about everything. We have to rethink our family lives. We have to rethink our work life. We have to rethink sustainable food.

I would describe it as an eye-opener and freeing because it was very freeing to be able to be forced to have to look at all these things. All these issues and problems and concerns that normally we wouldn't have been like, okay, I'm going to take a day. We’re just so busy in the rat race doing our stuff. When COVID came and said stop and think about it, it was very freeing for me to have this opportunity to consider where my life was and where the world was and things like that.

“I think COVID really forced everybody to completely rethink everything about everything. We have to rethink our family lives. We have to rethink our work life. We have to rethink sustainable food.”

What can people do to help?

Donate your time. Sometimes it's as simple as donating one or two hours a week to one of the programs here. Especially during times of crisis and difficult times, it's not just about making sure you're okay. It's during those times and you actually have to make sure that everybody else is okay. I would just say donate your time to whatever organization you support, whether it be cancer or anything, get out there.

The food heroes are the volunteers, the people that come out and stand in the 95-degree weather with us for four hours passing out food to the people who need it.

**And, last but not least, who's inspiring you right now in your community and food security?**

In all honesty, I think the food heroes are the volunteers, the people that come out and stand in the 95-degree weather with us for four hours passing out food to the people who need it. They're out there on a consistent basis at every one of our events, you know, rain or shine. From all age ranges, all walks of life. We have some high schoolers that come out sometimes and they really do it for me because they don't have to be there. They choose to be there.
To learn more about Nicky Winter and the work of ALEA Bridge visit: www.aleabridge.org
All Photos by Dave Homcy