Pantry Philanthropy
FOOD BUSINESSES THAT HELP OUT NEEDY NEIGHBORS AND CO-WORKERS.
INDIA RESTAURANT
India Restaurant provided
more than 3,000 free meals
for frontline emergency and
health care workers over the
first three months of the
COVID-19 crisis. Meals were
offered each day for pickup
and included a vegan dish of
the day or chicken masala. The
team found a way through food
to give back to frontliners who
are fighting to protect our community.
indiarestaurant.com
NARRAGANSETT BEER
This local fave launched the
#BuyNeighbor movement,
encouraging followers to buy
gift cards from Rhode Islandowned
gems. People received
a gift card to a small business,
and then gave one to someone
else, creating a chain of support
for businesses during the pandemic.
Narragansettbeer.com
HOPE AND MAIN,
NOURISH OUR
NEIGHBORS PROGRAM
Nonprofit food business incubator
Hope and Main’s Nourish
Our Neighbors program
raised funds from more than
300 donors and a grant from
the Rhode Island Foundation’s
Coronavirus Emergency
Response Fund to prepare
22,000 meals for those in need.
Distribution included free
breakfast and lunch for schoolchildren
and nutritious meals
made by member businesses to
food-insecure families, seniors
and other vulnerable populations.
makefoodyourbusiness.org
ELI DUNN, ELI’S KITCHEN
and RIC WILD,
GOOD NEIGHBORS
“Chopped” champion Eli Dunn
of Eli’s Kitchen in Warren was
challenged by Ric Wild of Good
Neighbors to create a meal
with the food pantry’s ingredients
live on Facebook. Viewers
learned to get fancy with humble
ingredients and helped
raise $8,500 for the nonprofit
too. eliskitchenwarren.com
PAQUETTE’S FAMILY
RESTAURANT and
KOBI DENNIS
Paquette’s Family Restaurant
in East Providence started Soup
and Smile Saturdays with Kobi
Dennis, of the Greater Providence
YMCA, to deliver free
soup across the state. Anyone
who ordered takeout at the
restaurant could donate $5 to
help feed people in need, and
the restaurant matched it by
filling bowls with hearty meals.
Paquette’s made the soup and
Dennis delivered it. paquettes
restaurant.com
DEREK WAGNER,
NICKS ON BROADWAY
and PERRY RASO,
MATUNUCK OYSTER BAR
In response to schools closing
due to COVID-19, restaurant
owners Derek Wagner and
Perry Raso separately started
providing free lunches for
students who began remote
learning. Restaurants offered
different pickup locations or
delivery options for students
who otherwise relied on school
lunches for meals during the
day. nicksonbroadway.com;
rhodyoysters.com
KAITLYN ROBERTS and
ASHLEY VANASSE,
EASY ENTERTAINING
Easy Entertaining cafe and
catering company volunteered
resources to help feed their
employees after they were
forced to lay off many due to
the pandemic. Owner Kaitlyn
Roberts and executive chef
Ashley Vanasse worked together
to provide meals each
week for the company’s staff
and members of their household.
The meals were prepared
and ready for pickup. easy
entertainingri.com
Funding
Futures
GoFundMe campaigns that
come through in the clutch.
Cromwell Lunch Ladies’
Meals for School Families
Rooms and Works,
Knead Doughnuts and
Providence Kitchen
Collaborative
This dynamic trio partnered
as the Cromwell Lunch Ladies
to help the Providence School
Department feed people in
need through donations. They
delivered 300 meals a week
to the school department for
pickup around the city.
gofundme.com/f/98p3bcromwell-collaboration
Meals for
Healthcare Workers
Kristen and Jonathan Beres
Tilly’s Cheesesteaks
The Beres couple created a
campaign to provide meals for
health care workers, raising
more than $3,450; they offered
donors a boxed lunch or
housemade mac and cheese
for every $15 contribution.
gofundme.com/f/tillysmeals;
tillyscheesesteaks.com
New England PPE
Jungil Hong
Artist Jungil Hong launched
a fund to buy personal
protective equipment for
health care workers throughout
New England and New
York. What started as a small
group sewing cloth face
masks became a larger
network that raised more than
$37,000 to date. Hong also
commissioned face shields
from local design collective,
Pneuhaus. gofundme.com/
f/ppe-for-new-england
039s-covid19-frontlines
—Isabelle Paquette
➜
52 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l SEPTEMBER 2020