As part of the expansion of our social impact program Project DASH, we’re proud to spotlight our partnership with United Way Worldwide.
Due to COVID-19, 50% of call volume to United Way’s 2–1–1 hotline for essential community services in the United States has been related to food accessibility needs due to the pandemic, particularly from seniors, the immuno-compromised, and low-income students and families who are unable to access necessities on their own.
We believe that together, United Way Worldwide and DoorDash are uniquely able to address this critical issue.
That’s why United Way is officially expanding their Ride United program, which addresses transportation needs, to include delivery of food and supplies with DoorDash. United Way Worldwide serves 95% of communities across the United States. Nearly 1,100 local United Ways work with food banks and food pantries every day. Our partnership enables social service organizations across this national network to reach people in need by using DoorDash’s last-mile logistics platform and community of Dashers, powering deliveries to at-risk and food-insecure homes.
While we had begun piloting together pre-COVID-19, we’ve accelerated our collaboration with United Way given the urgency of today’s need. Our operations teams have worked closely to create a process to assess and collect community needs and respond as swiftly as possible. To date, nearly 20,000 deliveries of food pantry and grocery boxes have been completed by Dashers in five states so far: California, Florida, Louisiana, New York, and Ohio. DoorDash will partner with United Way and the 211 network to launch this last-mile delivery solution in select additional locations on a rolling basis.
Others have joined us to support this initiative. Philanthropic and in-kind contributions from The Rockefeller Foundation, the Albertsons Companies Foundation, and the Why Not You Foundation, led by Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Ciara, are paving the way for even more deliveries in more cities in coming weeks, including the Pacific Northwest. We stand with United Way to invite other philanthropic partners to join these efforts by visiting UnitedWay.org/RideUnited or contacting us at social-impact@doordash.com.
At DoorDash, we believe in making room at the table. We’re committed to growing and empowering a more inclusive community, and believe that true innovation happens when everyone has the tools, resources, and opportunity to thrive. We are honored to collaborate with the United Way to do our part to increase access in communities nationwide, during, and beyond COVID-19.
Joining forces with United Way to increase access in communities nationwide was originally published in DoorDash on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.