Hi! It’s been a while. After 3 years of a hiatus, I started blogging again with my Author Spotlight series, highlighting interviews with published authors. Today I’m here to talk about something different, though. Something personal.

Vindeket Foods

A year and a half ago I first stepped foot into Vindeket Foods, a food rescue in Fort Collins, also a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. That first Sunday afternoon I went was a whirlwind of activity. Patrons waited in line outside under the warm sunlight while volunteers rushed back and forth stocking shelves and keeping everything running. 

A friend of a friend recommended the rescue to me when I asked about sustainability organizations in the area. But hearing about the Vindeket message was entirely different from living it. 

Over the year and a half I’ve volunteered there it has completely changed my perspective on food waste. I used to think that all the food being thrown away was bad. That’s not always the case.

Most of the donations Vindeket receives are from grocery stores, restaurants, and local farms. And most of the donations are perfectly edible. In fact, some of them are quite delicious. Without the rescue, all that food would be thrown away.

Vindeket’s message, which you can read more about here on their website, is about revaluing food and people. They’re not looking to simply “save the planet,” they’re creating a more harmonious existence between humans and food. 

As a writer, I immediately began to imagine how I would tell the story of Vindeket or any of the foods that found their way through the doors. I’ve written several stories about beared blueberries and other interesting experiences I’ve had during my time there. And yet, there was one story above all others that I was compelled to tell, Nia’s Rescue Box.

Nia’s Rescue Box

Nia’s story, about a girl experiencing the unfamiliar uncertainty of food scarcity, is one I can relate to personally. It is also one that I’ve witnessed among many in my community. 

If you’re not familiar with a food rescue, you might not know the difference between a food bank and a rescue. Unlike food banks, there are no income requirements or qualifications. Everyone who walks through the door is welcome to take what they need. All that is asked is only take what you will use to avoid creating further food waste. You are welcome to leave a donation as well whether monetary or through volunteering your time.

It’s run almost entirely by volunteer support and feeds more families than I can count (thousands I think?). My own family has benefitted from the rescue. Through regular volunteering, more organic produce has found its way into my home. I’ve created whole meals with just items I picked up at Vindeket.

My Food Scarcity Journey

The truth is, the first time I experienced food scarcity was as a new mother. I wrote a bit more about that experience, out alone on the prairie, in a post on Thrive Global years ago. But, I didn’t tell the whole story. For months, I paid for my groceries with credit cards. No one informed me how to apply for food stamps or extra help. I grew up believing that people only received them if they were homeless or at the very bottom of household income levels. 

Fortunately, my experience only lasted for months at the time before our financial situation changed. However, that fear stayed with me. Having panic attacks at the grocery store became a regular occurrence and I often held internal debates about whether we could afford things like ice cream or juice–anything not 100% necessary for nutritional health. 

Even though we eventually stabilized, I became a professional freelance writer which meant more instability. There have been ups and downs throughout my 3+ year career in writing, the most recent since January when I stopped working with a regular client. 

My family is lucky compared to some. We have options. We could sell our home and have money to live off of for a time. We’re managing and fortunate to have few expenses. And Vindeket helps in a big way. 

Spread The Word

Vindeket Foods is an organization unlike any other I have seen. Through creating this book, sharing the story of the good they do in our community, I hope to inspire others to create the same opportunities in their towns. I also hope to inform children and adults alike about the surprising frequency of food scarcity. Through empowering our communities and combating food waste, I want to spread the Vindy Message around the world. 

If you want to help me do that, please consider backing my Kickstarter here through choosing one or more of the rewards available. It would also be an enormous help if you shared this Kickstarter with your network. Thank you for reading and if you want to talk more about the project or how to connect with this fantastic organization, please feel free to reach out!