This story first appeared in the Fall 2023 edition of our “Peas & Carrots” newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here.
Second Helpings is celebrating our 25th anniversary this year, which has been a special opportunity to look back on all that our community has made possible together. While so much has changed since 1998, Second Helpings has stayed true to our mission and has operated the same three programs to fight hunger from all angles.
Although a lot has changed in 25 years, from 1998 to 2023, volunteers, students, and staff still gather in the kitchen to use rescued food to create meals and opportunities in our community.
For 25 years, Second Helpings has rescued food that would have otherwise gone to waste. Every year, our team drives more than 100,000 miles across central Indiana, rescuing food from grocery stores, wholesalers, caterers, and more – perfectly good food that these partners just don’t have room for. Since our inception in 1998, Second Helpings has rescued more than 47 million pounds of food.
That rescued food has been transformed into nutritious, homemade meals in our Hunger Relief kitchen. These meals are delivered to more than 100 social service agencies in central Indiana, where our partners can focus on their core mission, while depending on Second Helpings to provide the food. Since 1998, we have delivered more than 18 million meals to feed our neighbors.
Rescued food is also used in the Culinary Job Training program, where Second Helpings trains unemployed and underemployed adults for careers in the culinary industry. Our Chef instructors and partners work together to provide all the skills our students need to succeed in the kitchen and beyond. This summer, we celebrated our 1,000th graduate from this program with Class 155.
Thanks to everyone – our volunteers, food and financial donors, community partners, and more – for making all of this work possible, and together, we will continue this work to prevent waste, fight hunger, and provide opportunities, for our community.