"I started Chilis on Wheels last Thanksgiving to teach my son about the importance of helping your community. We made 15 vegan chilis and distributed them to the homeless in the park. Today, we serve vegan food to people in need every single week and even have chapters in Denver, Portland, San Diego and Puerto Rico, feeding a total of 800 people a month." - Michelle Carrera
Hi! My name is Michelle and me and my 5 year old son Ollie need your help. 1 in 6 people go to bed hungry every night in the United States and we're on a mission to help change that.
I started Chilis on Wheels last Thanksgiving to teach my son about the importance of helping your community. We made 15 vegan chilis and distributed them to the homeless in the park. Today, we serve vegan food to people in need every single week and even have chapters in Denver, Portland, San Diego and Puerto Rico, feeding a total of 800 people a month.
In order to continue carrying on our work, we need to raise money for food, equipment, care packages, event (Halloween and Thanksgiving) and promotional material.
We have never missed a week of food distribution. Whether it snows or rains, our team of volunteers has always been there and we hope to be able to do even more for our community in the future!
We have developed several programs that we are very proud of. We serve meals to the homeless and the community as well as their dogs if they have them. We talk about veganism and we engage young children and youth in participating in their community.
We have many ideas and goals to expand each of these programs, and we also have several events planned that will help us do more for our community and people in need. In order to continue what we are doing, we need your help.
By donating, you'll directly help us get:
THE FOOD: We are able to purchase items in bulk, which goes a long way, but we need more food to feed more people in all of our chapters.
EQUIPMENT: We need to replace some of the equipment. Our carts have buckled under the pressure. We transport 192lbs of food and water a week in carts with wheels, and they are feeling the pressure. We also need to replace some of our insulated bags, where we tranport the chili to keep it warm, which have torn or the zipper has broken. We also need to purchase new knives and a knife sharpener.
CARE PACKAGES: We are preparing care packages for the winter and we need funds to allocate towards toothpaste, deodorant, soap, feminine hygiene products, etc.
PROMOTIONAL MATERIAL: In order to raise money independently, we need several promotional materials like postcards, stickers, leaflets, letterheads, shirts to sell.
EVENTS: We have two events coming up soon that we need some funds for. Superheroes for a Compassionate Halloween is our event for our Youth Engagement Program. Our other event is our One Year Anniversary which falls on Thanksgiving, and which will have special treats and surprises for the people that we serve on that special day. We want to reach as many people as we can.
We mention all these programs and goals, but ultimately, our money goes to people. People like Irene. Irene lives in a homeless shelter. She depends on our chili to get her through Saturdays. She always has a smile and a kind word. Her life is rough, but like a diamond, she still sparkles. And she knows that she can count on us to be there with a warm chili, a smile, and a hug.
