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First Coast Connect

Struggling households; DeSantis campaign; Community Foundation; Best Jax events

A pop-up produce giveaway from Florida Blue to assist households dealing with food insecurity in Jacksonville's Eastside
Raymon Troncoso
/
WJCT News
A produce giveaway from Florida Blue helped people on Jacksonville's Eastside.

The pandemic emergency may officially be over, but many in our area are still struggling.

A new report from the United Way says nearly 40% of households in North Florida are struggling to make ends meet.

Pandemic assistance helped lessen the economic crisis caused by COVID-19, but many local residents continue to face financial hardship — especially in communities of color.

With more, we welcomed Melanie Patz, president and CEO of United Way of Northeast Florida.

DeSantis campaign

Could Gov. Ron DeSantis’ rightward lurch — especially on cultural issues — hurt his presidential chances?

One new analysis asks that question.

For more, we spoke with Alexandra Suich Bass, senior correspondent for politics, technology and society at The Economist.

Community Foundation

The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida has a new president.

His name is Isaiah M. Oliver, and he will come to the First Coast from the Community Foundation of Greater Flint, Michigan.

Oliver joined us to discuss his new role — and what drew him to Jacksonville.

Best Jax events

It’s Thursday, so Catalina Selvagn is here now to tell us what Cre8Jax has listed for this weekend and next week.

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Randy comes to Jacksonville from the South Florida Sun Sentinel, where, as metro editor, he led investigative coverage of the Parkland school shooting that won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for public service. He has spent more than 40 years in reporting and editing positions in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Ohio and Florida. You can reach Randy at rroguski@wjct.org or on Twitter, @rroguski.