Full Circle

Have you ever thought about the unexpected ways Food Runners can make people feel connected?

Danielle W. signed up to become a Food Runners volunteer last spring.  The first run she chose required  an evening pick up  from the Castro Street Farmer's Market with delivery to the Father Alfred Center .  An ambitious run for a  rookie to be sure.  On the morning of  the scheduled run, Danielle attended a memorial service for a good friend of her daughter's.  Wilson, the deceased, was 21 years old.  He'd overdosed on heroin after staying clean for eight months.  Danielle hadn't really known Wilson, but she'd heard about him through her daughter.  Danielle learned a lot about Wilson that day. He'd been a volunteer, a photographer, a lover of laughter and generous with his love. Friends and family spoke of him as a young man who pursued life head first and who believed in breaking the rules. 

That evening, Danielle was running late for the run and had forgotten to print the receipt she was supposed to bring along for any vendors requesting one.  She forged ahead without the receipts, assuming everything would work out and determined to fill her car as well as her heart which still ached from the memorial service.

And fill her car she did!  Danielle made numerous trips back and forth to the market stalls, loading up two large boxes of squash, five giant bags of basil, lettuces and edible flowers, a grocery bag full of eggplant, six boxes of peaches, two bags of strawberries, a bag of cherries and a load of Naan bread complete with containers of various dipping sauces. The food filled Danielle's small car from hatchback to front seat.  "The basil smelled so fresh and I felt full," she reflected.

Danielle arrived at the Father Alfred Center at about 9:30.  As two young men from the center unloaded her car for her, Danielle looked around at the signs and the faces in the lobby and realized the location was a rehab center.  For Danielle, this brought the day full circle from a young man dying of a drug overdose to a clinic where the folks attempting recovery from drugs would enjoy a good meal from the food she'd just delivered. "I appreciate Food Runners in so many ways," mused Danielle recalling that day.  "But mainly because it allows me to help."

Food Runners picked up and delivered 104,975 pounds of food in the month of February.  Volunteers performed 756 runs and the truck did 194.  Please welcome new donors Sephora Univeristy, Digg Incorporated, Robert's Corned Beef and Gate Gourmet.  Sephora University donated twice a day for a week during their winter training session at the end of the month. Gate Gourmet at SFO started with a bang donating over 2,000 ham and cheese sandwiches that were fresh and delicious, but contained too much moisture to go on board flights.  Also welcome Food Runners eight(!) new volunteers who signed up in the short little month of February.

Does your company host in house lunches or other events at which food is served?  Are the leftovers being thrown away?  Be the office hero.  Tell your company about Food Runners.  We'll be there with a smile to make you look good while helping your organization stay green and community focused by feeding the hungry instead of the trash.  It matters now more than ever. Call for your pick up today.  415-929-1866.