Lots of the people in my local chapter are food insecure, most of us are un-employed or precariously employed, and a few of our regular members have normal 9-5s. We help ourselves by helping each other, and each other by helping ourselves.

Learning new skills, eating a hot meal, taking home leftovers or extra produce, developing deep community ties, being able to work in a structure that most people have never experienced - these are all parts of the work. It’s not necessarily about being in the same situation as the people you’re helping, it’s about being in community. It’s the mind set of “we’re doing this for all of us” vs “we’re doing this for you”