Times have become very hard for many people in early 2020. Businesses that have been affected by shutdowns. But that also means that people have lost their ability to work and by no fault of their own. That makes living a normal life even more difficult, especially for families that have been living paycheck to paycheck. Everything from feeding yourself to simply being with friends for support has become a struggle. Luckily, we have people like Chef Jose Andres who is working hard to make a difference.
Chef Jose Andres is a Michelin star chef, restaurateur, and he operates a charity foundation that is helping feed America.
Chef Jose Andres
Many people have been hearing his name lately, Jose Andres. Andres is a Michelin Star chef who also runs a non-profit called World Central Kitchen (WCK). Andres started WCK back in 2010 and has since served over 16 million meals to people who have been affected by disasters like Haiti, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela. The non-profit organization travels to bring fresh, nourishing food to people who have no idea where their next meal may come from.
Usually, WCK can handle the issues alone since natural disasters usually happen in a central location. However, the recent disaster has affected not just one, central location. Instead, the entire world is feeling the pain and every aspect of life has been affected. The question is, how will Chef Jose Andres and WCK make a difference going up against something so vast?
Adapting to The Times
WCK has relied on volunteers to help with making meals, providing food supply, and getting those meals to the right people. However, people don’t want to volunteer and put themselves at risk and many businesses have been closed. That is why Chef Jose Andres is adapting the way things are done.
Andres is partnering with local restaurants around the world to get the job done. Negotiations are made and they agree on a price per meal that is donated to the cause. The meals are then paid for by the donations made to WCK and delivered to people in need. In fact, WCK has even partnered up with delivery services like Uber, GrubHub, and Caviar to help get those meals out in a safe way.
Inspiring the World
Food is something that we don’t think about until it’s not there anymore. We walk into our kitchens, make something to eat, and that’s it. There are other options as well like going to a restaurant or ordering take out. But we start to worry when we don’t have the money to stock our kitchens or head to the drive-through. The nest meal you eat might not be today, might not even be tomorrow, and those are the people that Chef Jose Andres wants to help.
He is using the skills he has as a chef, a business owner, and a human being to make a difference. As of writing this, Chef Jose Andres has delivered over 3-million meals across over 100 US cities and he is not slowing down. He is an inspiration to the world that giving up is the only way to fail. You should always try to make a difference because the one thing that we don’t ever want to lose is our humanity.