Commissioners heard an extended briefing on the city’s Helping Hands/Healthy Hands effort and on gaps in communication to older residents. Speaker 6 described the initiative as a combined response to food insecurity and mental-health needs and said recent drives produced roughly $35,000 in food donations and about $10,000 in cash that went through Helping Hands and partner organizations.

"We probably collected about $35,000 in food and about $10,000 in cash," Speaker 6 said, describing collection activity and how donations were channeled through partner groups. He emphasized the need to keep assistance anonymous and routed through organizations rather than providing individual cash gifts from the city: "As a city, we cannot go ahead and singly point out one person," he said, explaining legal or policy limits on direct distributions.

Speaker 6 also offered local need measures: he said about 17.5% of residents receive SNAP benefits, and he cited a county-level figure that a large share of aid recipients are working. Commissioners used those numbers to argue for broad outreach rather than targeting individuals publicly, stressing that postcards, mailed materials, printed fridge cards, and a hotline routed to the mayor’s office/Brookhoff could help connect residents to services.

Commissioners flagged logistical issues for outreach: limited marketing staff who handle web, newsletter and emergency communications, and postal delivery delays that can affect campaign timing. Staff and volunteers agreed to coordinate postcard copy, QR codes and a hotline number to be routed to an office (Speaker 6 said the mayor’s office would take Helping Hands referrals to Brooke/Brookhoff).

No independent verification of the donation totals or SNAP percentage was presented at the meeting; figures were stated by a commissioner as part of the briefing and characterized as estimates for planning purposes.