Yesterday, a few of us from ONE’s DC office took a day off from our usual work fighting global poverty to volunteer with an amazing organization called Food and Friends, located just a few metro stops away here in Washington, DC.
For more than 20 years, Food and Friends has been preparing, packaging and delivering meals and groceries to more than 1,400 people living with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other life-challenging illnesses in Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia.
Some of the volunteers we met have been helping out for more than 10 years, and with a little help from Chef Peter, Adam, Rena and I were soon chopping vegetables right alongside them. If our eyes seem a little puffy, that’s because we’d just (barely) made it through the onions, when Leah took the photo below.
While we were in the kitchen, others members of the ONE team were out delivering meals and smiles, unpacking boxes and taking care of the “friends” side of things, by calling to say ‘hi’ and check in on some of Food and Friends’ clients.
Robyn and Matthew boxing up meals for delivery
Pooja and Jen delivering meals
I’d be remiss not to mention how great the food was. It took a lot of self-control not to sample the Israeli couscous salad and orange custard we were packing up. Fortunately, we got to try a piece of tollhouse pie at the end of the day. It was delicious.
But Food and Friends is about much more than the wide variety of tasty and healthy food they deliver to people who need it. They have an incredible kitchen team who works closely with nutritionists to provide meals that meet a wide range of dietary needs. And along with the food, they provide companionship and support to clients and their loved ones and caregivers.
Thanks to Jane, Don and the whole team at Food and Friends for welcoming us and letting us help out with the important work you do. To learn more, check out the Food and Friends website and follow them @foodandfriends on Twitter.