Neither rain nor sleet

March 1, 2019

At FareStart, we are dedicated to serving and delivering nutritious, delicious meals to our community’s most vulnerable citizens through our Community Meals Program. We haven’t missed a day of deliveries in over 26 years and “Snowpocalypse 2019” was no exception. Because of the hard work of our students, chefs, volunteers and a business community that stepped up to help, we kept our perfect track record!

Through our Community Meals Program, we provide healthy, warm, delicious meals to shelters, low-income healthcare facilities and organizations across the city. Our Adult Culinary students prepare the meals as their first training opportunity. We provide these meals 365 days out of the year regardless of what Mother Nature throws at us. 

In the winter storm of early February, our volunteer groups and staff had legitimate transportation issues. We had to adjust and we put out a call to our supporters.

Volunteers answered in such a big way that we ran out of room for them to help in our kitchens and deliveries! 

“At FareStart, we approach our mission with collaboration and teamwork,” said Chef Wayne Johnson, corporate executive chef at FareStart. “From the drivers, to the volunteers to the chefs, everyone came together and got those meals out during a real challenging situation. We know those meals just don’t provide nourishment, they provide real opportunity and hope."

In addition, everyone pulled together to provide much needed warm breakfasts for the City of Seattle’s cold weather emergency shelters during the snow. 

The business community showed up too. Amazon provided covered, free parking for over a week. BizX helped us find and book lodging for those who couldn’t safely travel home. The Pan Pacific Hotel and the Hyatt Regency donated rooms for key staff as well.

We know that we can make a real difference in people’s lives because we see the strength, generosity and optimism in the community that supports our work every day. 

Thank you all for always being there. 

We are all in this together and nothing is going to stop us.