Mutual Meals: Feeding Our Community and Supporting Edgewater Restaurants

From Edgewater Collective:

As school was closing on Friday, March 13, and we began to think about how we could assist partners in connecting area families with food resources, we didn’t know where or how we would get food to families. We had spent most of the day going from store to store trying to find mac and cheese boxes to send home with elementary school students in our area. Thankfully, we were able to purchase over 600 boxes of mac and cheese to send home with students. We have also been able to purchase King Soopers and Walmart gift cards to help families over the last month.

Now a month later we believe we have stumbled our way into finding a way to connect seniors, frontline workers (healthcare, grocery and first responders) and families with a delicious meal, while also helping to create cash flow for two Edgewater restaurants.

Each week the number of community members we deliver meals from local restaurants increases:

• Week One: 88 community members served
• Week Two: 193 community members served
• Week Three: 247 community members served

For folks that are dealing with the stresses of loneliness, working in dangerous environments and struggling with lost wages and kids at home, a delicious meal from a local restaurant can go a long way to encourage members of our community.

And on top of this, the two local restaurants we work with, Providence at 5280 and Edgewater Inn, both see increased cash flow come through from the program. This helps them pay their bills and their staff.

Feeding community members + creating cash flow for businesses = community impact in the midst of crisis

Due to increased family referrals from Family Engagement Liaisons in Jeffco Public Schools, this next week we have changed our delivery schedule to reach more families. Thanks to partnerships with Jeffco Eats and Food Bank of the Rockies, we will also be delivering fresh produce on Wednesday and Thursday.

• Monday: Dinner delivery to seniors, healthcare, grocery and first responders in 80214
• Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday: Dinner delivery to families in 80214

The more meals we deliver, the more help we need from our community to keep the program going. Our goal is to keep delivering meals through April and into May as this pandemic continues. Due to the success of the program over the last three weeks, we have expended the funds we have raised so far and we need your help.

Click here to donate and help us continue this program to encourage community members with a dinner meal.

It is in moments of crisis, like the one we find ourselves in now, that communities come together to help each other. While we wait on other solutions, our communities need quicker solutions like Mutual Meals and other local efforts.

Let’s continue working together to support each other, especially those impacted most by this pandemic.

#EdgewaterTogether

Joel Newton

Joel has been a resident of Edgewater, Colorado with his family since 2012. He is the Executive Director of local education nonprofit Edgewater Collective and Editor of the Edgewater Echo.