For years, Scot MacRae has been distributing meals to those in need.
After he and his companions ate had restaurants, the director of the food rescue program at Cathedral of Hope in Dallas would pick up boxes of leftovers and distribute them.
On his way home, MacRae met a woman and gave her a box, but a man grabbed it from her hands.
“And she turns back to me, and she said, do you have another?” “That’s what MacRae said.” “And telling her that I didn’t have another crushed my heart. My buddies assured me that they would fix it when I told them about it.
Thus, it became a habit for MacRae and his pals to distribute 100 peanut butter and banana sandwiches along with bottled water. After hundreds of repetitions, they earned the nickname “peanut butter and banana guys.”
That initiative developed into the Giving You Food To Share food rescue program at the Cathedral of Hope in 2019, which MacRae currently leads. They were feeding roughly 150 people every week at the time, but according to MacRae, the demand continued to increase.
David Stenson, a friend of his, created the free smartphone app EETZ Rescue during the pandemic.
“He had a group in Irving that they were getting some rescued food, and when we got to talking and he saw what we did, he said, I think I can make it easier for you,'” MacRae explained.
The software links organizations like MacRae’s with excess food items that supermarkets find difficult to sell, such as spoiled fruit or food in broken packaging, that might otherwise wind up in a landfill. After that, they wrap it and share on the app how many food boxes they have. The boxes are available for pickup on Thursdays after being claimed on the app. To sign up, no documentation is required.
In addition to being able to distribute food more quickly thanks to the app, MacRae and his volunteers have more than tripled the amount of food they have been able to rescue this year—1 million pounds.
“The need is always there, but we are helping to close the gap,” he said.
Creating a Community
In a community area within the Cathedral of Hope, MacRae and his group of volunteers are assembling food boxes on a recent Thursday. The volunteers sort the boxes containing fresh vegetables and flowers and deliver them to those who registered via the EETZ Rescue app, all while the church organ music plays in the background and stained-glass windows serve as a backdrop.
In addition to providing food, the group is fostering community development. One new volunteer is Jeff Reader.
“I knew that I had found what I wanted to do, especially because of Carmelita and Maria,” he stated. “When they come in, I feel confident that this is going to go well.”
He’s talking about two Hutchins sisters, Carmelita Vasquez and Maria Nu o, who happened about this volunteer opportunity via a Facebook post.
We recognized the need [for] volunteers, but we also started visiting because they were providing food, which my family is currently in need of,” Vasquez added. “I am extremely fortunate to be able to feed my family and my grandchildren. I am aware that this week my family will be fed.
The volunteers are laughing and joking as they prepare the boxes. A spread of broccoli soup, homemade camote (sweet potato), and agua de tamarindo are on a table that Nu O prepared for the volunteers to consume.
They quickly highlight how important Nu O is to the volunteer team. She always knows how many boxes they can create, they said.
“I guess based on their food, and I get pretty close,” Nu o stated. “Sometimes I can squeeze an extra two or three boxes out of the food that arrives.”
She assists users in installing the EETZ Rescue app as one of her responsibilities. She said using the app to sign up ensures that people will leave with something, even though no one is turned away.
“There is a lot of need right now and we re seeing it more often,” Nu o stated. “The funds are not being transferred. It simply isn’t sufficient. They either pay their bills or eat.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that 1 in 6 households in Texas are food insecure. It is the nation’s second-highest rate.
No food is wasted thanks to Nu O and her sister. Any food that doesn’t make it is packed into a box and delivered to a food pantry in West Dallas.
One thing unites all of the volunteers: they say it feels like home, like family.
“It just ties it all together to be able to have something that ignites my passion as far as rescuing food and helping others,” MacRae stated.
KERA’s communities reporter is Priscilla Rice. Do you have a tip? Send her an email at [email protected] kindness of our members enables KERA News to exist. If this reporting is helpful to you, think about giving a tax-deductible gift right now. Thank you.
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