MoneyFood & hungerUrgent
Weekly meals for families facing hunger in Southampton
Elena runs a volunteer pantry feeding 137 families; this fund restocks shelves for the summer.
🇬🇧 United Kingdom2,971 views
Since 2020, our volunteer team has run Open Hands Pantry every Sunday from the back of a community center. We started with 23 families, and now we feed 137 each week.
Donations have dropped by about 48% this summer, while the line has grown every single week.
We rely on volunteers - 16 of us - and keep no salaries or overhead. I buy staples at wholesale prices at the Southampton market and keep every receipt.
Each $30 feeds a family of four for a week.
All of the funds go to groceries, fresh produce, and cold-storage costs.
Where the $2,250 goes:
• Rice, beans, flour and oil (wholesale): $1,100
• Fresh vegetables and fruit: $750
• Baby formula and diapers: $230
• Refrigeration and electricity: $170
I'll keep this page updated with receipts as things happen.
Updates from Elena
No updates yet. Supporters are notified when the owner posts one.
- Lerato R. Mokoena 🇿🇦 · $250
- Anonymous 🇮🇳 · $250
- Henri Charles 🇫🇷 · $200
- Gerhard C. Fortuin 🇿🇦 · $100
- Benjamin R. Pineda 🇵🇭 · $100
“Hope you get the rest soon. - Mandaue”
- Pierre Romain Gonzalez 🇫🇷 · $100
- Irina Marina Egorov 🇺🇦 · $100
“Be well. Thought of Elena all day after reading this. - Odesa”
- Jorge Gomes 🇧🇷 · $100
- Sibusiso M. Nkosi 🇿🇦 · $75
- Kiara F. Rajput 🇮🇳 · $75
- Anonymous 🇷🇺 · $75
- Anonymous 🇹🇷 · $62
- Shaista Zoya Hanif 🇵🇰 · $58
- Benoît Renard 🇨🇦 · $50
- Dilara Güneş 🇹🇷 · $50
“Sending love. Thought of Elena all day after reading this.”
- Nicolas Baptiste Mercier 🇫🇷 · $50
“All the best. - Saint-Denis”
- Arturo E. Vega 🇪🇸 · $50
- Samantha Cox 🇬🇧 · $50
“Good luck. Hope the August deadline works out. - London”
- Kwasi Kwadwo Gyasi 🇬🇭 · $50
- Zulkifli Dwi Mahendra 🇮🇩 · $50
“This is from my last paycheck, glad to do it. - Yogyakarta”
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Is there a list of costs somewhere? Just curious how it adds up for Elena!
Sure. The biggest one is rice, beans, flour and oil (wholesale), $1,100. The rest is in the list at the bottom of the post and I'll upload receipts as I pay each one. Let me know if you want more detail.
Everyone deserves a bit of help sometimes. After 28 years in retail I know how hard it's to ask for anything. Blessings.
Hope it all works out. Gave what I could, wish it was more. Put this on a community board in Breda this morning. Take care.
Great idea, hope you get there. Greetings from Iztapalapa
Sending love, Elena. I've been in a tough spot myself and it does get easier. Love from Rockford
Best of luck, Elena. Looking forward to the next update. I went through something like this 2 years ago and strangers helped me out. Take care