Pep Packs

Pep Packs is a grassroots health equity mutual aid launched in Los Angeles during the winter Covid surge. In a time when many were out of work and in financial peril, it became clear that we were far beyond upstream healthcare prevention. Many were getting sick, so Pep Packs began delivering free care packages to those sick and in need in LA County. We delivered over 1,000 packages and drove over 7,000 miles to serve our communities. As cases in California decline, we're currently in the process of partnering to distribute our essentials to those in need elsewhere in the US, India, and Latin America. We hope that future funding and partnerships will allow us to do local grassroots health equity work-- Covid specific and beyond-- globally. 

In November of 2020, I got Covid. I quickly learned that LA county didn't have systems in place to help support those sick. With hospitals reaching capacity, sick Angelenos would be on their own for at-home care. On the advice of my doctor, I got a few essentials delivered. My first week sick, I spent $500. Immediately, I worried about those struggling and out of work. How would they be able to take care of themselves when, pre-pandemic, few Americans had the money for a $500 emergency?

Thus, Pep Packs was born. At the height of the surge, we were getting nearly 50 requests per day. Our team of drivers trekked from Lancaster to Long Beach making no contact care package deliveries. Included in our packages: pulse oximeters, thermometers, hand sanitizer, water bottles, tea, honey, hand soap, masks, Tylenol, and electrolytes. Pep Packs partnered with local organizations like Community Coalition, Core Response, Mend Poverty, and Dignity and Power Now and allowed individuals to request through our website. In the short term, we plan to scale globally, to areas with uneven access to vaccines experiencing surges. In the long-term, we hope to be a player in grassroots health equity beyond Covid.

We're solving for uneven access to healthcare. Globally, many are affected by Covid. Today, India alone hit over 350,000 cases. They struggling to find oxygen and to care for themselves at home. Latin America faces a surge as well and it's anticipated that the US will have another bump. Pep Packs wants to ensure that everyone, regardless of financial resources, has access to supplies that could be helpful in their recovery at home. People with few financial resources are often too concerned with the day to day of survival to really stop down and take care of their personal health. And with hospitals at a critical breaking point, having the tools for homecare will be essential. 

Pep Packs consulted medical professionals to determine what tools would be essential for home recovery. In Los Angeles, we purchase, package, and make no-contact home deliveries to those sick. In our global scaling, we'd partner with local grassroots organizations to successfully target specific communities.

This work is disruptive because few local organizations are doing it. We work with people that have experience in affected/at-risk communities to best help reach their members. We are essentially a fail-safe for those who can't get access to hospital care because they're over-run.

Pep Packs has partnered with local organizations, with experience in at-risk communities, to reach affected members and determine their other needs. We've received countless testimonials from care package recipients who were so grateful for the supplies-- some have even asked to help distribute in their home countries that are facing serious surges-- specifically the Philippines. Many have been inspired to figure out how to make health resources consistently available in their communities. We plan to continue to identity and partner with local grassroots organizations with familiarity in their communities, raise awareness about global health equity and access to resources (extending beyond Covid), and hopefully help with vaccination efforts.