Food Podcast: A look at crisis nursery Jeremiah’s Place

This week, the food podcast focuses on the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank’s “food justice is social justice” initiative and features Jeremiah’s Place, a crisis nursery in the Pittsburgh area.

“A crisis nursery is essentially an emergency childcare center. Pittsburgh didn’t have one till about 2014 when we opened our doors,” acting director of Jeremiah’s Place Jordan Shoneburger said.

Initially, the organization was created by physicians and childcare professionals who saw a need for temporary childcare in the community.

“(The founders) were seeing families avoiding medical care because of childcare. You can’t go to certain doctors appointments and treatments if you have children in tow,” Shoneburger said.

Since it opened, the crisis nursery has served 1,100 to 1,200 children, giving 100,000 hours of emergency childcare.