Food and free COVID-19 testing offered Saturday at Mercy and Truth event

Gov. Laura Kelly’s COVID-19 testing van will stop on Saturday, June 27, at Mercy and Truth Medical Missions, 721 N. 31st St. There will be free food distributed to the first 300 people attending and free COVID-19 testing between 11 am. and 2 p.m. Saturday.

Gov. Laura Kelly’s coronavirus testing van will make its inaugural stop at Mercy and Truth Medical Missions to provide free tests on Saturday, June 27.

Mercy and Truth is partnering with AdventHealth Shawnee Mission and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to offer free food and cleaning supplies as well as testing, according to a spokesman for Mercy and Truth.

Mercy and Truth will provide translation in five languages, making the event accessible to non-English speakers and patients of different cultural backgrounds, including resettled refugees. English, Spanish, Nepalese, Burmese and Swahili translations will be available.

Testing will take place at the Mercy and Truth Clinic parking lot at 721 N. 31st St. in Kansas City, Kansas, between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. June 27. The location is between Minnesota Avenue and Park Drive. Twelve medics from the Kansas National Guard will be present.

Cleaning supplies and 300 food boxes will be available on a first come, first served basis.

Those who want to get tested for COVID-19 or pick up food will stay in their cars, according to the spokesman. They will be in the parking lot of the clinic. Volunteers will put food in the trunk and ask them if they want to get tested. If they want to get tested, they will stay in their cars and take the test there, in order to keep social distancing.

Mercy and Truth serves many patients whose populations face disproportionately high COVID numbers locally, such as refugees from Asian countries. Additionally, the population sharing the clinic’s zip code, 66102, has recorded more cases than any other zip code in the county.