During world wars, they were called "victory gardens," planted by families to help keep food on the table – and prevent food shortages. With grocery store shelves empty and families told to shelter in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are returning to gardening and to the name.

NeighborWorks network organizations say they are continuing to hear from residents interested in doing the financial education and credit repair that will help them on a path to buying new homes. But even before March turned to April, housing counselors say they were also receiving calls from residents who were worried about what was going to happen if. If they lost jobs. If they couldn't pay their rent or their mortgage as the COVID-19 virus forced businesses to shut down or scale back.

At their core, nonprofits are set up to help people. But in times like this, the need for help can be overwhelming. Here’s how two NeighborWorks organizations are working to meet the needs of their communities and the needs of their staffs.

Every weekday morning for the past five years, you'd find Mattie Shandon in the kindergarten wing at Chestnut Grove Elementary School in Decatur, Alabama. A volunteer in the Foster Grandparent Program through Community Action Partnership of North Alabama (CAPNA), she would unpack backpacks, go over math problems and make sure her group of students knew the sound every letter of the alphabet was supposed to make.

David Snyder was sitting at his desk at New Directions Housing Corporation in Louisville, Kentucky, when a series of texts from New Directions staff flashed across his phone. As he read through, the chief development officer discovered that a COVID-19 testing site had just been set up across the street from the housing corporation.  

On Friday, Chinatown CDC launched a take-out meal program to get dinners to residents in their single-room occupancy (SRO) hotels. The meals, provided by New Asia, a dim sum and community banquet restaurant located in Chinatown, allowed residents to avoid communal kitchens on their floors, a typical setup for the SRO hotels. And that helped residents maintain the physical distance suggested by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help curb the spread of COVID-19.

NeighborWorks organizations have spent the past few weeks drafting new policies and communications in the wake of the COVID-19 virus and figuring out ways to share them quickly with their staff, their community, other agencies and one another.

As COVID-19 continues to spread, NeighborWorks network organizations continue to connect with community members and to take measures to try to ensure their safety. Here's a look at what organizations are doing in Vermont and Missouri.

As they check to make sure their residents are safe, NeighborWorks network organizations are finding other, concrete ways to deal with issues that accompany social distancing and economic well-being in the wake of the COVID-19 virus. In Maine, Avesta Housing is looking at ways to keep senior citizens connected, while in New York, Asian Americans for Equality Inc. (AAFE), is moving quickly to help businesses harmed by racism and xenophobia.