Food and Friends “Slice of Life” Campaign Kicks Off
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, October 20th, 2009
Doing a good deed today is as easy as buying a pie.
The Food and Friends Slice of Life campaign kicks off this morning with a free pie-tasting at two locations in the District and heralds the start of their fundraiser which allows them to provide meals for those with life-challenging illnesses in the D.C. Metropolitan area.
The tastings will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. today, and tasters can sample several varieties of pies. Pie will be served by local celebs from the D.C. City Council as well as ABC 7 news anchors Cynne Simpson and Caroline Lyders at the J.W. Marriott location on 14th and Pennsylvania Ave.
Don’t fret if you reside or work outside the District and want to contribute. Northern Virginians can order pies online until Nov. 19 and pick them up on Nov. 24 on this side of the Potomac at various CVS locations including Arlington, Reston and Springfield.
The pie sale is in its third year, and last year the organization sold more than 3,000 pies. This year the nonprofit hopes to sell 6,000 pies to fund its coffers.
“It’s something anybody can do. Almost anyone can afford $25 for a pie,” says Food and Friends Communications Director Lisa Bandera.
Fundraisers such as the Slice of Life campaign allow Food and Friends to purchase their own food stuffs and thus provide healthier options than they would otherwise be able to if they relied solely on donations for the 2,800 client list they serve. “We want to make sure the meals meet the nutritional needs of our clients with life-challenging-illnesses,” she says.
The nonprofit delivers meals year-round, but Thanksgiving is a special opportunity to service clients in a way that lets them connect with members of their own community.
Food and Friends is able to “provide a slice of normalcy” that can be lacking in the lives of those who struggle with a illnesses such as AIDS or cancer, according to Bandera.
And living a “normal” life means having the ability to give back as well.
“So often you have to rely on others when you’re suffering from a life-challenging illness. We give each client enough food to feed four people so they can play host to others who have helped them out, and that’s a little measure of dignity you don’t usually get when you’re sick.”
–Amy Loeffler
Tags: Amy Loeffler, Food and Friends, Gut Check, Northern Virginia Magazine, pie sale