Small pizzeria has given away over 140,000 slices to local homeless

Shortly after Mike and Jenny Stevens opened their Little Caesar's franchise in Fargo, North Dakota, they saw a homeless man sitting at a nearby gas station. Mike thought he looked hungry, so he brought him a pizza. A few days later, Mike saw someone rummaging through the restaurant's dumpster. He posted this sign in the window, and his mission was born. 

Over the next two years, the pizza giveaway grew. Mike started to deliver pizzas to local homeless shelters, three of which have adopted 'pizza night' as a regular part of their routine. When Mike died of leukemia last year, Jenny and her daughters continued his generous practice. 

 Local patrons wanted to help. Since a single slice costs the Stevens' 50 cents to make, Jenny has set up a box to accept 50 cent donations from customers. She also set up a GoFundMe account to offset the cost of continuing the program. 

With the help of volunteers, the Stevens' franchise has given away over $70,000 worth of pizza, 142,000 slices to date!  About the program, Jenny said, “It’s a small thing that we can do to bring a big difference in their day and it’s just kept going. You have to come together to help each other out. We just do it because it seems like the right thing to do.”

Man hears of 54 illegal immigrants found in a tractor-trailer, brings them pizza

Watching the news at home in San Antonio, Armando Colunga heard that a tractor-trailer of illegal immigrants had been stopped nearby. He saw video of the 54 detainees sitting on the ground, awaiting their fate. Colunga felt compelled to act. He jumped in his car and drove to the site, unsure of exactly what he wanted to do. 

As he neared the immigrants' location, he saw a Little Caesar's Pizza. It occurred to him that the detainees had been inside that truck for some time and may not have eaten, so he bought seven pizzas. He brought them to the detectives and officers guarding the detainees. They confirmed his fear - the men, women, and teens now sitting outside the truck had been given water but no food. He asked for permission to distribute the pizza, and that permission was granted. 


Colunga learned the detainees are from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Brazil. Of Mexican descent himself, Colunga sympathizes with those who leave Latin America in search of a better life. He told a news affiliate, "If they were black or African people or white people coming from London ... I would have done the same thing," he said. "It's not about race." He also thanked the officers who allowed him to distribute the food. 

The tractor-trailer driver has been charged with human smuggling. 

Home health aide sees empty fridge, fills it

Amanda Perez wanted what most of us want - a nicer home, a new car, an updated wardrobe. But the financial demands of her growing family easily used up her salary as a home health aide.

One day, a client asked her to clean out his refrigerator. When she opened it, she was stunned. It was nearly empty. She turned to the elderly man and asked him who buys his food. He said that he bought it himself when he had the money. He looked ashamed, and Amanda's heart broke. She was ashamed of herself for wanting more material goods when this man had so little.

After work, she knew she couldn't go home, not yet. She went to the grocery store and filled a cart with easy-to-prepare food for the man. Then she returned and filled his refrigerator. Seeing his level of need had cut her to the quick, and she vowed to be more grateful for what she already has.

As much as I celebrate Amanda's change of heart and applaud her kindness, hers was a short-term fix. I sincerely hope her home health agency referred the man to his local Senior Services, Meals on Wheels, and Food Bank. Those agencies may not fill his fridge as completely as Amanda did, but they certainly offer a better long-term solution to the man's needs.

Courageous 20-year-old fights fire, saves food pantry

On Wednesday, CJ Sparks was driving through Citrus Heights, California when he spotted smoke and flames coming from a church. He turned his car around and pulled into the parking lot of Advent Lutheran Church. One entire side of the structure was on fire. 

Thinking quickly, the 20-year-old Sparks called the fire department, but he was concerned by how fast the fire seemed to be spreading. He took matters into his own hands. He entered the church, grabbed a fire extinguisher, and got to work.

He was soon joined by a neighbor with a hose, and the two of them fought back the flames until firefighters arrived. 

The pastor is thankful for the early fight against the fire. If the fire had spread, it would have destroyed the food pantry, and with it, meals for hundreds of the area's homeless people every week. Sparks says, "...it was something I had to do." The pastor calls it "a God moment." 

Toronto chef opens a pay-what-you-can soup bar

For years, Toronto chef Jagger Gordon noticed the food going to waste - imperfect but completely edible produce, canned items close to expiration date, oddly-shaped breads from notable bakeries - good, nutritious food thrown in the dumpster while some local residents went hungry. As a man who made a living working with food, the injustice bothered him. He decided to do something about it.

He founded Feed It Forward in 2014, intent on connecting the food industry to those in need. He developed an app which he hopes "will allow farmers, wholesalers, retailers, caterers, restaurants and even home cooks to donate food without having to worry about legal restrictions that currently exist prohibiting the free donation of food. The app will provide an alternative avenue for food donation by providing a platform connecting those in need, with donors, who will be paid by donation via the application. The recipients will have unrestricted access to donations and will receive donation notifications detailing the types of food available, locations, and pickup times in their area." 

In keeping with his mission of connecting nourishing food with those who need it, Gordon's newest venture just opened - a pay-what-you-can soup bar. Presently, he offers four kinds of soup, all made by him from ingredients that would otherwise have ended up at the landfill. Instead, those gleaned ingredients are nourishing bodies and encouraging the spirit of the people of Toronto. 

Random act of kindness leads a homeless man back to his family

A woman known only as Bev noticed a homeless man sleeping at a bus stop in Chadderton, England. She went into the nearby Baguettes of Broadway and handed the owner, Ciaran Egan, £15 for breakfast and hot drinks for the man for a week. When she left, Egan told his employees of this random kindness. All were touched.

Egan posted the story on his shop's Facebook page, and the post was shared over 12,000 times. People who read the story were motivated to kindness themselves. Donated tents, clothing, and food were offered to community aid agencies, and one person set up a crowd funding page to help get this particular homeless man back on his feet.

During a follow-up conversation with Bev, she realized she actually knew the homeless man - he was the brother of a former co-worker. She remembered the family had moved some distance away, and she tracked them down. Within a day, the man was reunited with his family. He now has a roof over his head and meals on the table, all thanks to Bev and her kind heart.

And the £15 she offered for his week's food? It has been donated to a local non-profit which aids the homeless.

Kind-hearted boy donates his AFV prize to charities

Eleven-year-old Luke Finlan didn't know his mom sent a video of him crying during his fourth grade graduation to America's Funniest Videos. So he was extra surprised when he learned the video had reached the finals. 

Before the Albany New York region family flew to LA for the show's taping, Luke told his mom that he wanted to share his prize money with people who needed it more than him. He especially wanted to help veterans and people who are hungry. His mom contacted two local organizations, Soldiers Heart and Equinox. The folks at Equinox worked with Luke's mom to organize a fund-raiser as part of the 'viewing party' for Luke's AFV episode. That would multiply Luke's donation, funds Equinox could use for their Thanksgiving dinner.

The family sat in the audience as the videos rolled. Luke's video won first prize, $10,000. Now those two charities have benefited from Luke's generous heart.

This Montreal restaurant gives free food to the hungry

Marché Ferdous is a Montreal restaurant situated beside a church. The restaurant co-owners, Yahya Hashemi and Ala Amiry, noticed a number of homeless people gathering near the church. Their Muslim faith and their middle-eastern upbringing led them to be generous to those folks, so several months ago they posted this sign in their window in English, French, and Arabic.

Their offer went largely unnoticed until a skeptical man who works nearby decided to test it. On January 2nd, Sean Jalbert went into the restaurant. He said he had no money and was indeed given free food, no questions asked. 

Jalbert was delighted with the warm hospitality and good meal he was given. He admitted his ruse, paid for his meal, and then posted his findings on Facebook. His post was shared thousands of times. 

Hashemi says that support for the restaurant's generosity comes back to them, often right from other customers. Many pay their bill and leave extra, saying "The next meal you give away is on me." 

 

3500 pounds of steak donated for Christmas dinners

An anonymous donor made sure folks who eat at Union Gospel Mission's kitchen had a great Christmas dinner. The downtown Seattle mission serves about 1000 meals a day, and executive chef Jordan Fisher was 'in shock' when he was told of the donation: 3500 pounds of rib eye steaks. No doubt those who eat at the kitchen were delighted with the treat.

What a wonderful, generous Secret Santa gift.  

This English pub fed the homeless on Christmas Day

I've often heard of churches, social service agencies, and non-profits hosting holiday meals for the homeless. But I've not heard of a business doing that, especially a business that depends on food and drink purchases for its livelihood.

That's exactly what happened yesterday in Manchester, England. A pub leased by Sean Brett opened its doors to over 300 homeless people on Christmas Day. They enjoyed food and drink, and received donated haircuts and gifts. Helped by two staff volunteers, Brett reports that donated items kept rolling in all day while his patrons socialized and chatted in the friendly pub setting.

Brett was inspired to act when he happened upon a homeless woman on the sidewalk on his way to work one morning. He's realistic; he knows he's only giving folks one meal on one day. He hopes that the publicity his dinner has received will inspire other people to reach out and do something to help this vulnerable population.

This kid followed his heart and found FROGS

In 2010 when Will Lourcey of Forth Worth Texas was 7-years-old, he saw a man holding a sign that read, "Need a meal." He asked his parents Julie and Bill, a teacher and a financial adviser respectively, what he could do to help. Their answer and Will's passion to help led to the creation of the non-profit organization Friends Reaching Our Goals or FROGS.

Will encourages his friends to get involved to in the organization, with their mission being to "end hunger, raise money and awareness for the hungry, inspire youth to make positive change, and have fun while helping others."

Will's example has inspired many. His efforts have been lauded across the country. His story has been shared on Nickelodeon and CNN, in print and online, and even at the White House.

Since 2010, FROGS has helped provide more than half-a-million meals for those in need. 500,000 plus meals served, all because one kid wanted to help and his parents showed him how.

Holiday gifts that build a future

Millions of us spend December shopping for gifts. Malls and online stores offer great deals, coupon and member discounts, and a host of other enticements to get our dollars. Those dollars go into the pockets large corporations whose execs make big bucks and whose employees work their tails off and barely squeak by.

I recently found a number of websites which promote gift-giving with a social conscience. Forbes created a list of companies which donate 10% or more of their profits or match purchased items one-for-one. Some companies provide education, others clean water. Worth checking out.

American Express has promoted Small Business Saturday for years now, and they provide an online guide to help shoppers find local businesses with unique goods year round. This type of shopping allows jobs and dollars to stay local. Small businesses with their personalized service and unique goods provide a diverse, interesting landscape to our towns and cities. Without them, America would be one boring big box store.

Our Better World website provides links to unique goods made mostly overseas. Proceeds from the sales of these handmade items create a living wage for families below the poverty line.

Don't want to buy 'stuff?' Consider giving a gift certificate from a non-profit.

A personal favorite, Heifer International , takes your monetary gift and turns it into a flock of chickens or a goat. Those animals provide eggs or milk which can then be eaten or sold, creating both food and business opportunities for an impoverished family.

Kiva gives donors a chance to invest in a small business enterprise anywhere in the world. They coordinate micro-loans which can be used to purchase the goods needed to start a business. When the loan is repaid, the donor can choose a new business to support, so the same money is recycled over and over.

Interested in helping fellow Americans? Check out Society of St. Andrew's Potato and Produce Project. They organize teams who glean fields after the harvest. The produce gathered is then donated to food banks and shelters to feed the hungry fresh nutritious food.

Her one wish was to give

Thirteen-year-old Emma Allred has seen her share of health problems. At age 10, she was diagnosed with a rare form of ovarian cancer. She's had three surgeries so far, with a fourth coming up soon. 

Other teens might feel sorry for themselves. Not Emma.

When she learned she'd been granted a wish by Make-A-Wish, she knew what she'd ask for - a chance to help others. Emma said her wish was to feed the homeless. And the collection of this massive amount of food should be fun. Her community came out to support her, and the result was a dream come true. 

A park near Emma's home in Twin Falls, Idaho was the chosen site. Make-A-Wish supplied face painting artists, popcorn, and cotton candy for the events' participants. They also donated individual bags for the homeless, each containing a toothbrush, toothpaste, blanket, and sleeping bag according to Inside Edition. A local grocery chain donated a truckload of food. Individuals and fire departments donated hundreds of boxes of non-perishables. In all, over 13,000 pounds of food was given in honor of Emma's selfless wish. All will be given to local food pantries. 

Brenda Vogt,director of program services for Idaho's Make-A-Wish told KMVT News, "It's incredibly unique and we are so thrilled that somebody is as kind and generous as Emma to want to give to others instead of have the wish granted for herself." 

Extreme couponing to feed the hungry

So how's this for a goal - before her 30th birthday next year, Lauren Puryear wants to deliver 30,000 meals to hungry people. 
Wow.

And Lauren is well on her way. This young lady with two Masters degrees and a PhD founded a non-profit  called For the Love of Others, LLC. It provides services for people who are homeless, who need help providing for their children, or who have mental health needs. And when it comes to food, Lauren is ingenious at stretching her agency dollar. Food donations from major grocery chains are a huge help, plus, like many of us, Lauren has taken to clipping coupons.
A lot of coupons.

She has become an extreme couponer. She clips and compares and buys from a number of different stores. Many of the items she buys now are free or nearly free, which places her well on her way toward her goal. 

The impact this woman makes is breathtaking.