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Chicago Food Rescue Has Tons of Reasons to Cheer 2nd Anniversary
Volunteer-Driven Organization Has Made a Quick Impact for Those in Need
When I moved to Chicago in 2011, I decided that writing about politics for 30 years was enough, and determined to use my experience to promote those working at the grass-roots level to build a better-for-people-and-the-planet food system.
Chicago Food Rescue is, to me, a prime example of grass-roots organizing for positive change, and that's why I was happy to attend their 2nd anniversary party on October 13 at Midwest Coast Brewing in Chicago's Near West Side neighborhood.
The organization touts these statistics, since its 2024 founding, that underscore its rapid and powerful impact in reducing food waste and transporting still-fresh and healthy food directly to other non-profit groups that distribute it to those in need.
686,282 lbs of food recovered
2,850 rescues
120 community org recipients
1.87M lbs of CO₂ mitigated
[CORRECTION: The original article included statistics that were for this year to date.]
And the most amazing part, to me...
The two people in the photo, seen speaking at the celebration, are Jake Tepperman, the founder and executive director, and Hannah Roucher, who came on at the beginning of this year as director of food recovery.
They also are the only two employees of Chicago Food Rescue. The rescues are made by volunteers who sign up online to do pickups and then deliver the food directly to the recipient organizations.
"When I started Chicago Food Rescue two years ago, I envisioned the impact that we would have, but I couldn't have imagined some of the people I would meet or the connections I would make," Jake said in his short statement at the event. "There are so many of you in this room who are on the front lines doing the work every day when we need it most. Some work with unhoused people or immigrants or other vulnerable populations at a time when there are so many obstacles being thrown our way, and there are people working on improving food access legislation because, in addition to a logistics issue, hunger is a policy choice."
He noted that federal cutbacks in food assistance benefits have made even more people vulnerable to losing access to healthy food:
"SNAP restrictions have put our already vulnerable neighbors and populations at greater risk, and you have all stepped up, whether that's doing a rescue, contributing financially, making important connections, donating food, or any number of other ways.... I've said this before and I'll say it again, there's nothing more powerful than community. All of us working together can and have had a massive impact."
Click the button below to learn more about Chicago Food Rescue and explore volunteer opportunities.
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