From a simple lunch table conversation to an internationally active initiative, Hand to Hunger has transformed significantly in just two short years. Hand to Hunger’s founders spoke to with The Lasso about its beginning and the widespread expansion it has gained since its start.
Started by Elbetel Kiros, Adam Belouad, and Grace Calabrese, the idea sprouted from a combination of Belouad’s experience with fasting, and Kiros’s sophomore personal project, which was raising money for Ethiopian families who were displaced during their civil war.
“I realized that being complacent and not doing anything about the problems that are going on around you is so dangerous, but once you start going at it and fighting for the change you want, you will see results,” Kiros commented.
With that, the seed was planted, and Hand to Hunger was born.
“Originally, the club was called Hand to the Homeless, because we wanted to pack meals for homeless shelters. Then we realized that we wanted it to be more broad…In the DMV only 5% of the people who are food insecure are homeless, 95% of the other people are ones who may be just going through a rough patch. So we wanted the name to be more inclusive,” Belouad explained.
Initially, when the club operated on a smaller scale, the food was sent to New Hope Housing, a homeless shelter that distributed meals.
“Now with the bigger meal packing events, we’ve been sending them to Martha’s Table, which is a distribution center in DC, so they get the meals and distribute them to the food insecure community within different regions of Washington DC,” Kiros noted.
With no intention to expand the club, it started small, only including some of their close friends, but it eventually expanded from 30 meals to 5,000 meals.
“It became a lot more expensive, and we were spending thousands of dollars at a time,” Belouad expressed.
This prompted Kiros, Belouad and Calabrese to apply for the Global Youth Action Fund (GYAF), an international IB grant that gives monetary contributions to innovative projects.
“They also provided a social entrepreneurship course and gave tips on how to start a nonprofit. That helped in the organizational sense and put an emphasis on the international aspect of it, making sure projects could work across the globe,” Belouad explained.
The grant allowed them to come back the next school year and hold a school wide meal packing event, where students and staff packed 5,000 sandwiches.
“We grew so quickly it felt like we were always trying to catch up,” Belouad added.
Within the first couple of months of the club’s founding, students at nearby schools became interested and they formed new chapters. Before long, the club crossed international waters and was established in other countries around the globe.
“We had friends at other schools and the chapter program grew really quickly…last year we were adding around 20 schools a week,” Belouad said.
The club is currently active in 26 states, seven countries, and one territory, including the United States, Canada, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Morocco, Bulgaria, and Puerto Rico.
Despite the fact that it was not the club’s intention to start chapters around the globe, the founders’ desire for change is evident through their passion for action.
“It took a lot of hard work, a lot of organization, and a lot of planning, but essentially we were like this is so simple. You get a bunch of people that want a change and to fight for these things, and once you have their willingness to do things, it’ll get done. That was really inspiring,” Kiros said.
While the future of Hand to Hunger is uncertain, the founders firmly established its overall objectives, and they have hope that younger grades can maintain the club’s goals.
“We want to make sure that when we leave, there’s people who continue the club and make sure it is still as successful,” Belouad remarked.
Belouad and Kiros wanted to make it clear that this is not an ordinary club, done for service hours, or for recognition.
“Sometimes the reason behind joining clubs is getting service hours, but I feel like it is one of those things, where you can’t be in the club and be heartless at the same time, because as you do it you realize how much impact you’re making towards the community,” Kiros said.
Hand to Hunger’s journey is long from done. The club will continue making an impact in communities around the world. All thanks to the amazing Meridian High School students who sat down one day and decided to make a change.
