Like most music venues across the country, The Sinclair is not currently open for business. But the area near the stairway to the Harvard Square club will be dishing food for those who need it, thanks to the installation of a new community fridge and pantry at 50-52 Church St. in Cambridge.
Dubbed “The Fridge in the Square” and complete with its own Instagram page @cambridgefridge, the fridge and pantry is part of a mutual aid initiative supported by the Harvard Business Association and others in the community. It’s based on a grassroots effort to provide nourishment and essentials at no cost, operating on a “take what you need” model that encourages others to donate to the fridge to keep it stocked. It joins a host of other community fridges around the state, popping up as residents struggle to get by during the COVID-19 pandemic, including one down Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge’s Central Square.
According to statistics provided by @cambridgefridge on November 30, one in every eight Massachusetts residents are facing food insecurity, there has been a 59 percent increase in food insecurity since March, and the state also saw a whopping 400 percent increase in applications for public food and assistance programs.
If you need the fridge, hit it up. If you don’t need the fridge, consider helping keep it full. Take a look: