16 | MAY 7 • 2020 

New Volunteer Delivery App Launches

LAUREN HOFFMAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Jews in the D

A 

New York-based com-
pany called Umbrella is 
offering a new service 
to combat the realities of iso-
lation, and it has just launched 
that service in Detroit.
Before COVID, Umbrella 
was running a marketplace 
app connecting adults over 60 
with a network of gig econo-
my workers who would run 
errands and do household 
tasks for them: such as picking 
up prescriptions or helping to 
clean out gutters. Operating in 
New York, New Jersey and in 
Florida, it charged an annual 
membership fee plus an hourly 
fee for the length of each task 
completed. 
Now, in the era of fraught 
grocery store visits, when 
leaving one’
s house can feel 
like suiting up for battle, they 
are doing something new. 
Umbrella is using its technol-

ogy to mobilize volunteers to 
fetch groceries, prescriptions 
and household items for 
seniors, and deliver them in 
CDC-recommended, safe and 
contactless ways. Delivery is 
free. The the 60+ user covers 
the cost of the items delivered 
and may chip in a donation, 
but is not required to pay any-
thing for delivery services. 
This comes at a time when 
few grocery delivery services 
in Metro Detroit (Instacart 
and Shipt) have seen histor-
ic demand and are almost 
entirely unavailable. For folks 
over 60 looking for items to be 
delivered, this is a godsend.
Lindsay Ullman, the CEO of 
Umbrella, said, “We look for-
ward to doing our part to help 
make navigating this pandemic 
a little bit easier for older adults 
in Detroit. If we can relieve 
some of the fear and anxiety 

that people have about how to 
get groceries, medications and 
other essentials while staying 
home, that’
s our goal. “ 
Umbrella rolled out its 
volunteer delivery service 
in the three new markets of 
Metro Detroit, Birmingham, 
Alabama and Cleveland, Ohio, 
in partnership with Venture for 
America, a national entrepre-
neurship fellowship that helps 
connect recent college gradu-
ates (including, three years ago, 
the author of this article) with 
startup jobs in cities across 
the US, including those three 
markets. 
VFA is helping Umbrella to 
build their volunteer forces in 
those cities to meet demand. 

Sign up to volunteer at askumbrella.
com/volunteer. Request a delivery at 
askumbrella.com/request-delivery or 
by calling (844) 402-2480 between 
9 a.m.- 6 p.m., Monday-Friday.

I

nvisible Hands, a nonprofit 
organization started at the 
onset of the COVID-19 
pandemic by two friends in 
New York, delivers groceries 
and other goods to vulnerable 
members of the community. 
Now, Ben McColl, a freshman 
at Michigan State University 
and a member of Temple 
Israel, is hoping to expand that 
outreach to Metro Detroit. 
“Right now, we’
re in the ini-
tial stages of it. We’
re trying to 
recruit a big base of volunteers 
in the Metro Detroit area,
” 
McColl said. 
Once the chapter is 
launched, people who need 
groceries or other supplies will 
fill out a delivery form request 
online. The organization will 

match requests with a volun-
teer who lives nearby. 
Volunteers will call to con-
firm the delivery and ensure 
they are shopping at the right 
store and picking up the exact 
items needed. People can 
coordinate payment by calling 
ahead to the grocery store, 
cash or by reimbursing the 
volunteer through a cash app 
after the delivery is complete. 
All volunteers are required 
to wear a mask and gloves 
while shopping, wipe down 
the grocery bags before 
delivery and are asked to use 
self-checkouts if possible. 
Volunteer will drop off 
items at the person’
s home and 
ring the doorbell to let them 
know their items have arrived. 

They will then step 6 feet away 
to ensure the person gets their 
order and have a friendly con-
versation. 
McColl needs at least 
200 volunteers to launch. 
He’
s a handful of volunteers 
away from meeting his goal. 
Volunteers can participate in 
grocery pickups and deliver-
ies or stay at home to handle 
phone calls and other duties. 
“This small gesture can go 
a long way in making some-
one’
s day. Participating in this 
type of organization can help 
others in the community who 
may not be able to do it them-
selves,
” McColl said. 

To volunteer, visit https://tinyurl.com/

yaghgctp. 

CORRIE COLF STAFF WRITER
Offering ‘
Invisible Hands’

Front-
Door 
Deliveries

These new services aim to 
help get food and supplies 
to those who can’
t get out 
on their own.

AMONG THE EMOTIONS 
many of us are experiencing 
right now, a shared sense of 
isolation is emerging as a 
common theme. For some, 
that sense of isolation is inten-
sifi
 ed because it is, practically 
speaking, quite real. Especially 
for older adults, who may be 
choosing between physical 
safety at home and venturing 
out to get much-needed food 
and supplies. Here are some 
new options for those who 
might need help — and vol-
unteer opportunities for those 
who would like to lend a hand.

VIA UMBRELLA FACEBOOK

