A downtown Jewel has been doing its best to serve its faithful customers during the pandemic. Since March 29, the Flint Farmers’ Market has been processing orders for curbside pickup and the customer support has been phenomenal and much appreciated. “We’ve been running since March 29 and we are averaging 130 pickup orders on Thursdays and nearly 150 on Saturdays,” says Flint Farmers’ Market Manager, Karianne Martus. “We’ve had a great response from customers and tons of help from the Square Company that processes payments including a special giveaway from Square to our curbside customers.”
On May 19, Congressman Dan Kildee announced that nine mid-Michigan hospitals will receive at least $107 million in federal grants to support health care workers and health systems on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic.
The city of Burton Memorial Day 5K Run & Walk is held annually on Memorial Day, which fall this year on Monday May 25. Proceeds benefit the Salvation Army as well as numerous local programs. In order to keep with the social distancing guidelines this year, the Burton Memorial Day race will be transferred to a virtual race. You can run or walk at a location of your choice.
For the past seven years, Krystal Jo’s Diner/Bike Giveaway has put a free bicycle in the hands of a child in Flint and surrounding towns within Genesee County. Nearly 5,000 children have benefited from this program and due to COVID 19, fundraising has become very challenging and funds are exhausted, according to Tony Tucker, owner of the Flint diner and founder of the Bike Giveaway.
For 57 years, Gaines Jewelry, located at G-3310 Beecher Rd. in Flint, has provided honest customer service and dazzling jewelry. They are one of the area’s only full-service jewelers, offering jewelry and clock repair, as well as sales. They recently opened shop during the current quarantine offering curbside service and repair.
Z Chef’s Café & Marketplace, located on the lower level of Zehnder’s of Frankenmuth, is now open daily for takeout and curbside pickup. The current hours for Zehnder’s are Monday–Thursday, 11am-6pm, Friday, Saturday and Sunday,11am-7pm. Guests can order by calling (989) 652-0575, or online at Zehnders.com. During hours of operation visitors can also stop in and pick up all of their favorites including a family chicken four-pack, soup, salads, sandwiches and more. Guests are requested to use the Bakery entrance located on the north side of Zehnder’s.
Natural Stress Solutions is a hemp-based CBD company dedicated to using cannabinoids to help people find relief without the use of harmful prescription drugs, according to Owner Eric Jenkins. While the doors are temporarily closed due to the pandemic, Natural Stress Solutions offers online service with free shipping and is open for curb-side service on Mondays and Fridays at 4-5pm, and is also available by appointment. To set an appointment, call 810.701.0888 and speak with one of their specialists. “We are a CBD provider and all of our products are manufactured in-house to ensure a higher standard than the ones set in the industry,” Jenkins reports.
McLaren Health Care has been awarded $626,328 in funding for expanded telehealth services from the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) COVID-19 Telehealth Program, according to a press release. McLaren is one of 30 health care providers nationwide to be approved for this special allocation at this time.
I wrote a story a few years back about the Bavarian Inn in Frankenmuth. I had the pleasure of speaking with Dorothy Zehnder, the matriarch behind the family-owned restaurant, who is in her 90s. She gave me one of her cookbooks, “From My Kitchen to Yours.” She wrote a personal message to me that said: Dinner is better when we eat together!
Restart Flint & Genesee is a special recovery program by the Flint & Genesee Chamber designed to help small business in Genesee County that has suffered distress due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Initially established with a $200,000 grant from the Consumers Energy Foundation, the program was recently bolstered by an additional $262,500 grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation to support African American businesses in Flint. The program will award grants of up to $5000 to cover expenses associated with reopening to qualified businesses under guidelines and requirements for social distancing and safety.
Catholic Charities knows that things have been difficult for everyone over the last few months and they want to spread a little joy! The organization has partnered with Good360 and Toys for Tots to help provide Toys and Games to children and families in need during COVID19 to help keep the kiddos occupied!
