MBCC and Centerplate take special care of seniors during the pandemic

MIAMI BEACH, FL – Nearly two months in and over 391,000 meals have been prepared and distributed to home-bound senior citizens since the start of the global pandemic. Miami Beach Convention Center’s food and beverage provider, Centerplate, has partnered with DeliverLean – a door-to-door delivery service – who is deploying the prepared meals to thousands of at-risk seniors in Miami-Dade County every day. The center itself may be temporarily closed housing first responders and immediate staff combatting the COVID-19 virus, but the efforts of their team and service partners continue to serve the community.

As the exclusive food and beverage provider in hundreds of venues – including convention centers, stadiums and arenas – all around the country, Centerplate has been working in each of their communities to recognize the growing need of their residents and to give back in any way that they can, including other partnerships in the Miami area like with the Miami Dolphins Relief Foundation Food Relief Program.

With Florida having the highest share of residents who are in their 70s, 80s, and older, the decision to give back and support this community was an easy one. “It feels amazing to the entire team here at Centerplate who is involved in giving back. We can’t imagine anything more important than to be feeding the ones in need a delicious and nutritious meal and helping to sustain thousands during these hard times,” said Centerplate Executive Director Steven Haas.

While the Centerplate team is used to preparing thousands of meals a day for large, convention crowds, this initiative hits close to home. After the Coronavirus pandemic triggered many events to postpone or cancel, and the declaration of a state of emergency by the local mayor turned the center into an Alternate Care Facility, it was unclear whether staff would remain in the building and stay employed. However, through this program, 30+ employees had the opportunity to continue working, and all for a worthy cause.

The Centerplate staff, while adhering to new safety protocols and procedures, work 7 days a week to plan and prepare these meals. Their focus is creating healthy meals that meet the nutritional needs of the Miami-Dade seniors. Some of their most popular menu items are pasta, green beans, Bolognese sauce, chicken, cous cous, artichokes, tomatoes and more, totaling to more than 270,000 pounds of food.

If everything keeps moving on schedule, the team is expected to hit their 500,000th meal by June 22nd, with no plans of slowing down.

Source: Centerplate