There’s nothing worse than opening the fridge door and seeing empty shelves. And for those without reliable access to a grocery store, it’s an even bigger problem. But 901 Community Fridges, a new venture spearheaded by founder and community organizer LJ Abraham, is set to fight food insecurity in the Bluff City by providing all manner of nourishment to those in Memphis who need it most.
- Samuel X. Cicci
- 901 Community Fridges founder LJ Abraham stands next to the first community fridge at First Congregational Church.
Just yesterday, Abraham and fellow team members Joey Scott and Laura Margeret were hard at work preparing their first community fridge in Memphis at First Congregational Church (1000 Cooper). The refrigerator, which was donated to the organization along with several others, is today set up for use on the Blythe Street side of the building.
“Yesterday, we had some amazing people come out, build the structure, set up the fridge, and decorate it,” Abraham says. “It was a really smooth process, and people are already welcome to come out as needed.”
The program is designed to be a wholly community-driven effort. “Anybody is free to come by and donate anything they’d like. And in return, any community member can come and take what they need. We’re hoping to bring in some folks from each neighborhood who can monitor the fridges, too. Clean it out as needed, make sure food isn’t expiring.”
As for donations, 901 Community Fridges will accept almost anything that Memphians are willing to contribute, whether it's ingredients, prepared meals, or sundries. “People are always in need of something, so we’ll be happy to accept most donations. The only thing we’ll ask people to steer away from is raw meat, or food that’s close to its expiration.”
- Samuel X. Cicci
- Each fridge will sit under a newly constructed shelter and bear exterior designs.
Abraham initially came across the idea for a communal refrigerator when she saw the concept being demoed in Portland, Oregon. After some research, she found that multiple cities had tried the experiment, and all had been beneficial to their communities. “We based our model on NOLA Community Fridges,” she explains, “as they have a similar poverty level to us. We had conversations with them about what best practices would look like, and we learned this could be really beneficial to Memphis.”
First Congregational Church reached out to Abraham after she began floating the idea around town, and the two parties quickly agreed to use the church as the launch site. “It has worked out great,” says Abraham. “First Congo sometimes has leftover goods from their food giveaways, so if there’s ever a time where the community isn’t able to contribute much to the fridge, we can ensure it’s always stocked anyway.”
With one fridge officially launched, Abraham is eyeing Binghampton as the next location, but also wants to place fridges in Frayser, Raleigh, North Memphis, South Memphis, and Whitehaven. “Really, anywhere there’s a food desert. Memphis has a lot of those, and it’s important for people to have an option.”
Once set up, each fridge will be open 24/7. And once more are activated around town, 901 Community Fridges plans to create an interactive map so donors can find drop-off points. With some organizations already eager to find a good use for leftover food, the program should have plenty of stock.
For now, Abraham says they need more volunteers. “Both in terms of monitoring the fridges, and volunteering to be a host location.”
For more information, visit the Facebook page, or send an email to 901communityfridges@gmail.com.
"need" - Google News
March 10, 2021 at 05:07AM
https://ift.tt/3bvXtJW
901 Community Fridges: Bringing Food to the Table for Those in Need - Memphis Flyer
"need" - Google News
https://ift.tt/3c23wne
https://ift.tt/2YsHiXz
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "901 Community Fridges: Bringing Food to the Table for Those in Need - Memphis Flyer"
Post a Comment