Smart Shopping in a COVID-19 World

Editor’s Note: We hear often from our friend, Ray Rickman, about how difficult it is to go safe walking, working, and shopping in this time of the coronavirus. Often it is the runner or biker who spoils the safety zone, so Ray curated some information about how to do it right and offers it to share with our readers, here. 

Rickman is the founder and head of Stages of Freedom, whose mission is:

To provide youth of color access to swimming programs in order to reduce the number of drownings in the minority community. 

To build community by creating and providing programming about Black Rhode Island life and culture to a wide audience.

To educate and empower inner-city youth by providing cultural opportunities and access to museums and live performance

A Professional Shopper’s Tips on Shopping Safely In-Person

During the Age of COVID-19

1. Before leaving home, wear a quality, well-fitting mask that fully covers your nose and mouth.

2. Never pull the mask down while in public.

3. Wear a pair of fresh latex gloves before entering the store.

4. Do not touch the entrance door if at all possible, because hundreds before you have.

5. Bring a bottle of (spray nor gel) hand-sanitizer and disinfect the handles on the cart or basket you will use before touching it.

6. Spray the same sanitizer on your gloves.

7. As you shop, maintain at least six feet from other shoppers; if possible, wait for an aisle to clear before going down it.

8. Do not touch any item you do not intend to purchase.

9. Do not use your cell phone during your shopping, you may contaminate it, and may distract you from social distancing.

10. When checking out, do not touch the counter.

11. Again, do your best when in line to maintain 6 feet from the person in front and behind you, and nicely encourage them to do the same.

12. Pay by credit card or with exact change, so you are not exchanging currency that could be contaminated.

13. Upon exiting, remember not to touch the door. If it is not electronic, use your foot or cart to open it.

14. Once out of the store, remove latex gloves as soon as possible, without touching your hands, and safely discard them.

15. Put on a clean pair of latex gloves and load the groceries into your car.

16. At home, remove all groceries from the bags, discard bags immediately, and wash of all food and food containers with dish washing liquid. Let the items air dry before putting them away.

17. Wash all surfaces, counters, tables, etc. that the groceries touched before they were washed.

18. If you have underlying health conditions, or are of a certain age, 60 years or older, you probably don’t need this advice, because you shouldn’t be in a grocery store anyway.

19. In such case, please see or Grocery Delivery/Pick-Up Guide by visiting: https://www.stagesoffreedom.org/forum/covid-19/ri-food-delivery-curbside-locations

Derived, in part, from New York Times information, May 2020 – and lots of other tried and true advice.

Visit Stages of Freedom’s new website for much more information on navigating COVID-19:  https://www.stagesoffreedom.org

Ray Rickman, Co-Founder, Executive Director, Stages of Freedom