Grass Roots Efforts Addressing Food Insecurity

Aside from listening to music and dancing or making my magic in the kitchen-cooking or baking, my favorite pastime is watching movies. While I do love a good military or spy action movie, I can just as easily drift into a completely different genre of faith and inspirational movies.

I recently watched, the magnificent Taraji P. Henson and her co-star Sherri Shepherd in Tyler Perry’s movie Straw, which is described as a psychological crime drama, that explores the theme of systemic failures. While not based on a true story, the movie is inspired by the stories of single mothers, who have been marginalized by society. Women who work long hours, at multiple jobs to make ends meet, but fall short of being able to keep up with the cost of living. They are forced to live paycheck to paycheck, with little or no savings and often resort to spending “their last” to buy medicine or put food on the table. Their struggles generally go unnoticed by society and aren’t fully addressed by governmental services.

That’s why when I see people like Karen Mcmillin, quietly going about cleaning and stocking the Oak Park Community Fridges and addressing food insecurity in a respectful way, I do what I can to support her efforts, by contributing. The same with the driving force behind Soup and Bread West, Jennifer Malloy Quinlan who each and every month, cooks up a couple of crockpots of soup to support non-profits addressing food insecurity and greets community members with her smile and a passion for serving others.

They represent the best that exists in each of us. They give because they can and they advocate for others, not only because it’s not only the right thing to do, but a part of who they are. They also inspire those around them, drawing in other women like Melba Lara, who regularly re-stocks the community fridges with fresh foods donated by herself and her colleagues. And male allies like Donnie Biggins, the owner of Robert’s Westside, the host venue for Soup and Bread West, who happens to make a great chicken soup!

For those of you who don’t know…

There are two community fridges in Oak Park, Euclid Avenue Methodist Church, 405 S. Euclid Ave. (Fridge is in shed across street in church parking lot) and Boulevard Presbyterian Church, 607 Harvard Street. There are some restrictions as to what should be donated, however, fresh fruits and vegetables, along with staple items like milk, bread and eggs are always needed.

If you are looking for a little inspiration…

Soup and Bread West is held the 3rd Tuesday of the month at Robert’s Westside in Forest Park, from 6-9pm. Live music, cash bar with drink specials along with homemade soup, salads, breads and desserts donated by community members. Goodwill offering collected at the door which supports the selected non-profit of the evening. June is Austin Harvest, a youth-led open air fresh-market that provides fresh produce to the residents of the Austin neighborhood of Chicago.