If there is a silver lining in the challenges we faced in 2020, during this pandemic, it would be how we learned to be agile and responsive to meet the needs of our community. Looking forward to 2021, we know that the challenges many in our community are experiencing will continue for some time. We want all of our neighbors to know that ICA stands strong and ready with resources to help provide stability and well-being -- and we are ready to help.
To give you a quick snapshot of what we witnessed this past year, we realized an 800% increase for families needing rental and utility assistance alone, which was astounding. As we look to the coming months, we anticipate this escalation of need to continue. We are working with all of our community partners on every level to ensure we have the resources in place to continue the same level of support in 2021.
In addition, our food shelf continues to see a steady increase in first time visits. Our customer service volunteer desk has relayed a number of messages from callers indicating they know the need is great and chose not to utilize our food program because there are others who are in more in need than they are. I am humbled beyond words by those remarks, and again, I want to assure our community we can help all who come.
The generosity of our community has never been stronger! We work hard to collaborate with our network of donors, volunteers, businesses, foundations, food banks, faith communities, government, civic organizations, and our neighbors, all of us pulling together to be front and center. As we close the books on 2020, I see better days with the promise of hope on the horizon as we lean into our ability to reconnect in our familiar gathering places in the coming months.
This is not the time to let our guard down. Rather, we need to continue to build our safety nets to help everyone realize their full human potential. We are taking some time to step back to take a closer look at the needs of our community to identify where there might be gaps. Through this strategic effort we will be reaching out to many of our partners for feedback to evaluate how we can better serve our community so no one is left behind. I look forward to sharing more in the coming weeks.
With gratitude,
Dan