Voter registration event gives food to people affected by pandemic

Arizona’s number of identified COVID-19 cases has reached 217,237 (up 412 from the day before), and the number of deaths stayed steady at 5,622.

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Coronavirus

It’s Sunday afternoon, and this is Coronavirus Watch from The Arizona Republic, where we update you on the latest about how COVID-19 is affecting you and our community.

Organizers expected about 3,000 attendees at an event on Sunday at Phoenix College that took a notable approach to registering people to vote, by offering free boxes of food and supplies. 

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The event, called “Fuel the Vote,” was hosted by When We All Vote, a national non-profit aimed at increasing voter turnout, and One Arizona, a local community organization made up of 28 partners. It aimed to help people and families who have been hard-hit by the pandemic.

“We could just have a voter registration drive, but here it’s coupled with making sure that our families have enough to eat,” said Araceli Villezcas, program director for One Arizona. “We’re taking care of each other.” 

Other Fuel the Vote events are taking place across the country.

© Meg Potter/The Republic
Mallorie Cohen (middle) loads a driver’s trunk with diapers at the “Fuel the Vote,” a voter registration and drive-thru food drive to help support community members impact by the pandemic on Sept. 27, 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona.

The latest as of 4 p.m.:

Social distancing tip of the day: Are you flying for the first time since the pandemic began? Here are a few steps you can take in advance to ensure you don’t get stuck at the airport.

Silver linings

Theater companies have been grappling with the question of how to put on shows without putting their audiences at risk since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Phoenix Theatre Company took action to answer that question. The downtown Phoenix company is building an outdoor stage that will let it put on performances while allowing the audience to practice social distancing.

Phoenix Theatre Company will premiere new shows on the outdoor stage beginning in November. 

“With the outdoor theatre, every aspect of the patron experience had to be reconsidered and redesigned,” director of production Karla Frederick said in a press release.

“It started as a dream and now I’m happy to say it’s really happening.”

Moment of zen: Oktoberfest may be canceled in Munich but toned down celebrations are still on. Here’s how to celebrate. 

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— Kaila White, breaking news editor, The Arizona Republic, [email protected]. Have questions? Send them my way.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Voter registration event gives food to people affected by pandemic