Each month Pope Leo, like Francis before him, offers a prayer intention inviting the universal church to join him in lifting up a particular petition. The solemn requests range from broad topics like world peace, immigration, and homelessness to specific appeals like negotiators in Russia and Ukraine, agents and agencies that help migrants, and Christians who respond to Christ in the poor and outcast members of society. This month his prayer is that “all people, from large producers to small consumers, become committed to avoid wasting food and do our part to ensure that everyone has access to quality food.”

In Kansas City, there are numerous groups leading the way and individuals you probably know who serve as catalysts for food rescue and redistribution. Among the organizations are Pete’s Garden, Nourish KC, Kanbe’s Market, and Catholic Charities. By recovering surplus food from grocers, restaurants, caterers, and other businesses, they feed hungry people. Many food businesses are periodically overstocked with various items, some that are perishable and must be used quickly, others that have a long shelf life. Many also toss items according to the expiration date of the first ingredient (not the same as expired food). These items, rather than being wasted (usually going to landfill), can get rescued from the businesses and taken to social agencies that have volunteer chefs on hand to create and distribute nourishing meals the same day to feed hungry neighbors, and they have pantry workers who can repackage food to help individuals and families in their community with longer lasting items.

You can learn more about local efforts by visiting websites like Kansas City Food Wise to see how food, that a few years ago would get wasted or buried, is now rescued and taken to hundreds of sites in eastern Kansas and western Missouri.  Harvesters KC, a community food network, as you may know, has about 900 partners in the metropolitan area that collaborate to diminish hunger. Catholic Charities has numerous Serve & Lift centers spread about so neighbors can better help one another. If you would like to join this universal and local prayer-in-action effort, here are some ways to do so.

If you are a “super shopper” who knows how to hunt bargains for canned food, paper products, or items with longer shelf time, direct service centers like those named in this blog post would love to partner with you as their agent. You could either directly connect with one of a hundred pantries in the city or drop off your treasures at my spirituality center in south Kansas City, from where I take them to various social service agencies, usually one of my parishes; I am also glad to divide up bulk purchases. If you are interested in food rescue which essentially means that you have a relationship with a neighborhood grocer or other food provider and you are willing to pick up what they would otherwise throw out, I will connect you with more seasoned rescuers like Shanita McAffe-Bryant or Mary Coppinger Orndoff, who can mentor you to collect the food and redistribute it to a place of your choice (like Nourish KC near downtown, Catholic Charities near Grandview, or an inner city location like Bishop Sullivan Center or Saint Therese Senior Center) where food can be used immediately in meals for hungry souls, or separated and repackaged for families in their area, or added to their pantry. If you would like to volunteer at a community garden or help at a pantry, volunteers are always welcome at most sites, and I can help you connect to one. There is also a need for drivers who might offer a day per week (or week each month) to pick up from stores and drop off at redistribution centers or work with Meals on Wheels to deliver lunch in homes of elderly or disabled residents. 

Of course, at the core of the Pope’s plea is that we all be more conscientious of personal habits and ways that we waste food.  Yet, if you wish to do more by participating in this month’s prayer of the Holy Father by rescuing and/or redistributing food to our less fortunate brothers and sisters, there are many ways to do so; some are quite simple and some require greater intent or commitment. If you are interested in going deeper into it, I will gladly discuss some options with you and suggest a plan or make a connection for your next step. Feel free to contact me at frdon@stjkc.org.