The impact our community fridge (and pantry) has had in our community in just five short months has been truly incredible. We began by collecting donations from a few farmers market vendors and, by the end of the market season, were receiving hundreds of pounds of fresh fruits, vegetables and bakery items from those vendors each week. There was even enough excess produce to share with a nonprofit organization who provides culturally appropriate food to refugee families newly arriving in Denver.
The impact this vital resource has made in our community for those struggling with food insecurity was made possible with a lot of heart and hard work put in by our team, volunteers, local businesses, families, and friends. With the farmers market season over for the winter, we've been focusing on increasing participation and involvement from the community. Our wonderful kid team members organized a neighborhood school food drive, collecting over 145 lbs of food for the fridge and pantry. U.S. Space Force personnel also held a food drive and have committed to doing so once per quarter. And the number of food donations put directly into the fridge and pantry by neighbors has steadily increased, helping donated funds to stretch further. Our community fridge was even featured in a local news story on Denver's Channel 9 (KUSA)! This exposure has led to interest from community leaders in helping to launch new community fridges in additional locations.
None of this would have been possible without the initial seed funding provided by ChangeX and Nickelodeon. Those funds made it possible to quickly get our fridge up and running by paying for required insurance, flyers and website development to spread the word, and food to fill gaps in between community donations. We were fortunate to have the fridge and supplies to build the pantry and fridge shed donated free of charge. The community impact of this project cannot be understated. It is heavily used, requiring restocking daily - sometimes multiple times a day, by persons experiencing homelessness, seniors on a fixed income, young families struggling to make ends meet, and others dealing with difficult life circumstances. We're so grateful for the support of ChangeX in bringing our idea to life and are excited to launch more community fridge locations in the near future!
Action plan:
Timeline: When will you be able to start your project? How often will your team meet? Are there any key dates to share for the project?
Budget: You don't need to share exact prices, but please share how you're planning to spend the seed funding & what costs you're anticipating to get your project up and running:
Impact: How will your community benefit from this project? Do you have any measurable goals for your project, such as the number of people that will participate? Are you hoping to spread knowledge or increase interest in a specific subject?
Location: If your project requires physical space, have you decided the location? Do you have all necessary permission and permits to carry out your project at the chosen location?
How has your kid leader been involved in the planning of the project so far?
How will kids be involved in the design and activation of this community project?
