Stop Food Waste. Reduce Food Insecurity.

Did you know food waste is one of the largest contributors of harmful gases that contribute to the warming of our planet’s temperature? Did you know there’s a way to combat this while also feeding people in our community who don’t have enough nutritious food for themselves/their families? Free99Fridge is a mutual aid initiative started back in August of 2019 by Latisha Springer in response to seeing a rise of food insecurity as the COVID-19 pandemic caused job layoffs at record rates. There are many non-profits doing amazing work in our city, but the mutual aid model allows anyone to participate and means the fridges can be open 24/7, making them accessible for all people to share food and get food if they need it.I got connected with Free99Fridge in early 2021 after seeing a sign when I was hanging out with friends on the patio at Best End Brewery. I started small, buying a few extra pantry items when I was at the grocery store and taking them to one of the fridges when I was out running errands. Since then, I’ve been cooking a few meals a week and taking them to the fridge, usually on a weekday afternoon because that’s when the fridges are pretty depleted.The perk of Free99Fridge is that anybody can get involved! There are incredible volunteers who check on the fridges almost daily, making sure they stay clean, composting old food, and boosting needs as they arise, connecting with local businesses who can donate extra food, and redistributing donations that could be better used by other organizations. Because this is 100% volunteer-based, they are always looking for new folks to get involved! You get to choose how little or how much you want to contribute and when.Free99Fridge is helping to divert food waste from landfills by connecting with restaurants and local businesses that would be throwing the food out otherwise, composting food that has been donated and isn’t good anymore, and by helping local households have an option of where to take meals that they won’t be able to eat rather than letting them sit in the fridge and go in the trash at the end of the weekend. The amount of food that has been rerouted from a landfill to being consumed by a person who wouldn’t have had a meal otherwise is amazing. This imaginative type of solution-based problem solving on a community scale is what we need to be able to come together as an interdependent society rather than an individualistic focus like so many systems we find ourselves intertwined with. While this isn’t a faith-based initiative, my faith is the reason I am prioritizing being involved. Jesus told us to feed the hungry and be in community with those who are intentionally pushed to the margins. I can’t think of a better way to do that right now than helping neighbors have meals to eat so they won’t have to go through their day not knowing where their next meal will come from.Have food that you bought and aren’t going to finish before a busy week? Cook it up, label it (you can find the guidelines HERE), and take it to a free fridge! Found a good deal on ready-to-heat meals and bought a few for yourself for a busy week? Buy a few extras and take them to a free fridge! Work at a restaurant that throws away lots of extra food at the end of the day? Volunteer to take leftovers to a free fridge!The main idea of Free99Fridge is to put things in the fridge that are in your fridge. Easy as that. I hope you’ll consider getting involved in this beautiful movement of neighbors feeding neighbors as the effects of this ongoing pandemic continue to be felt by so many in our community._____________________________________________________________________About the Author: 

Michelle Hettmann (she/her) is the Communications Director at Burke United Methodist Church and Communications Consultant for Neighborhood Church. She grew up in the Northern VA area before moving away for college/grad school. She studied Human Development at Virginia Tech (go Hokies!) and then moved to Atlanta, GA to pursue her MDiv at Emory's Candler School of Theology. In her spare time, she loves trying out new low-waste gluten free/vegetarian recipes, discovering new thrift stores, and watching the latest Netflix original series. Michelle is passionate about environmental justice and the role of people of faith in the fight for climate justice. On the weekends, her favorite place to be is in a park on a picnic blanket with some good food and friends.