I really enjoyed reading this quote because it inspired me that anybody can have courage and it is okay to take a risk even if you think that youre not going to win
Food Rescue
Did you know that almost three trillion pounds of food is wasted in the world every year? John Williamson, a Carmel native, realized how much of this food is being wasted by restaurants in our own community. He then turned this realization into an opportunity for him to help those around him daily.
John Williamson was an elementary school teacher at Cherry Tree and Prairie Trace Elementary Schools from 1990-1999. He frequently volunteers at Circle City Relief and The Heritage Classic Foundation. After teaching, he got into real estate for roughly eight years before founding Food Rescue, “a leading national food recovery organization,” which he has pursued as his profession ever since.
Back in 2007, his wife read an article to him about people who were dumpster diving to get food because their families were starving. John Williamson wanted to discover a way to get leftover food from local restaurants before they throw it away so that he could get it to people in need. He then did some research and discovered that one in six Americans are “food insecure” and one in twenty Carmel citizens are “food insecure,” meaning that they do not have enough food to eat. He had this idea that he could pick up surplus food from restaurants and deliver it to people who are unable to get enough food. Then, he and his family started picking up food from local restaurants and giving it to people in shelters who are starving. The first restaurant that let him and his family pick up their leftover food so that he could donate, was Panera. His idea spread and he grew his organization and it is now nationwide. This non-profit organization is called Food Rescue and they are keeping many people from starving across the country. Williamson started very small just like anyone else who wants to make a difference.
Getting to the point where he could make a real difference was not easy. Williamson said that the biggest challenge has always been, “convincing restaurant owners to donate their food, to let go of the fear of being sued and do what is right” (Williamson). Williamson worked with local Little Caesars owner, Dave Koone, who was willing to be the first pizza franchisee to take the risk and donate pizzas. Today, Food Rescue is working with 80 Little Caesars franchises and they are collecting about one million pizzas per year and getting them to people in need. He said that the thing that motivates him every day is his faith. He explained, “Jesus called us to heal the brokenhearted and bring good news to the poor. I have an opportunity every day to help those in need” (Williamson). Williamson gained local citizens’ trust and they would help him out and volunteer to grow this organization. He worked hard and got recognized by the Indianapolis Star and was rewarded with the 2008 Citizen of the Year. He also got the Indianapolis Pacers attention and their organization called him a hero. Overall, John Williamson is a very accomplished man, getting recognized even nationwide with the Jefferson Award for community service.
This concept seems rather simple, but in reality, there are actually very few citizens who would be willing to do what John Williamson has done as he takes the risk of living off of people's donations so he can focus full time on growing Food Rescue. There were definitely times when he wanted to give up but he didn't and now his idea has grown to be nationwide. “Over one million meals annually are being fed to children and families in need rather than landfills”(www.foodrescue.net). Everybody who volunteered or volunteers to pick up and deliver food with food rescue is making an impact on people's lives. There was a mother who was volunteering for Food Rescue, and was also receiving food from them. One day she told John that for the first time ever, her two children told her they were full. All thanks to Food Rescue and John Williamson’s dream.
|