Every Friday morning I'm at that kitchen by five o'clock. I stir that pot because I know there are children who will walk through those doors and that soup is the only warm thing they'll have until Monday. You don't need a reason bigger than that.
Dolores Reyes
Eastside Parish Kitchen volunteer · 11 years of service
No chair empty.
No plate bare.
Nourish is a grassroots network of neighbors — church kitchen volunteers, retired teachers, block captains — making sure no family on our streets skips dinner tonight.
I retired from teaching after 32 years. Now I run the backpack program every Thursday. These kids eat my sandwiches and I eat their drawings they leave in the bags. Best trade I've ever made.
Margaret Okonkwo
Retired 3rd-grade teacher · Millbrook District
My block has 14 families. I know which three didn't have a full fridge last week. When Nourish drops off those community boxes, I'm the one who makes sure they get there first.
Terrence Beaumont
Block captain, 8-year resident · Riverside Heights
We open those kitchen doors at 5:30 AM on Saturdays. By 5:31 there are already people waiting outside. They don't wait for handouts. They wait for dignity. That's what we serve.
Sister Claudia Mendes
Parish kitchen coordinator · St. Augustine Parish
children go to school without breakfast at least three days a week.
Source: County Food Security Report 2025 · USDA Economic Research Service
After my husband lost his job, I didn't know how to tell the kids there wasn't enough. The community fridge on our corner — I cried the first time I saw it full. Nobody asks your name. Nobody makes you feel small.
Priya Nambiar
Mother of three, Westpark neighborhood
The school nurse told me to come. I thought it was charity and I almost didn't. But it's not charity. It's neighbors. Every Friday that bag comes home with my son and it has things my kids actually eat. Real food.
Damien Osei
Father, Millbrook Elementary parent
I'm 74. I live alone. Getting to a grocery store means two buses and I can't carry much anymore. The meal delivery on Tuesdays isn't just food. It's the one time someone knocks on my door.
Estelle Fontaine
Senior resident, Riverside Heights
"The quiet dignity of a shared table."
Hunger doesn't have
a polite address.
Our 18 service neighborhoods are mapped below. Every dot is a kitchen, a fridge, a backpack drop. Every neighborhood is someone's home.
of households in our service area live more than 1 mile from a full-service grocery store.
Active service areas
I grow sweet potatoes and collards. For years I couldn't sell to the big distributors — too small. Nourish buys from me every week. My food goes straight to the school lunch program. That's the whole circle right there.
Amos Whitfield
Urban farmer, Cedar Street Community Garden · Northgate
I see kids fall asleep in third period every Tuesday. By Friday, after the backpack bags go home, they're different. Alert. Participating. I've been a school nurse for 22 years. Hunger looks like a lot of things and I know all of them.
Nurse Keisha Drummond
School nurse, Jefferson Elementary · Millbrook District
Four ways
we fill the gap.
Every program is run by people from the neighborhoods they serve. No outsiders, no bureaucracy — just neighbors who know what their block needs.
Community Fridges
24/7 outdoor fridges stocked by neighbors, for neighbors — no forms, no questions.
Weekend Backpack Program
Nutritious bags go home with 480 students every Friday — enough food for the whole weekend.
Hot Meal Kitchens
Church kitchens open early six mornings a week. No appointment, no ID, just a warm plate.
Senior Home Delivery
Tuesday deliveries bring fresh meals and a human connection to 180 homebound seniors.
By the time you reach this line,
someone on your street is still hungry.
The people who fill our fridges, stir our pots, and deliver our meals aren't professionals. They're your neighbors. Saying no to joining them is leaving an empty chair at a table that's already set.
501(c)(3) registered · 94¢ of every dollar goes to food programs · No spam, ever
You don't need a reason bigger than a child who's hungry.
Dolores Reyes · Eastside Parish Kitchen · 11 years of service