Since early February, the Reno Gastro Project, whose stated mission “is to support the local economy while feeding community members facing hunger”, has been purchasing restaurant meals at full price for those most in need.
In nearly three months, they have already raised about $16,000 dollars. Susan Abele, the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Nevada State Coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, along with three of her co-workers, had this vision in helping our neighbors in need. On a recent morning, she sat down with Our Town Reno reporter Richard Bednarski at the local restaurant, Lili’s Restaurant and Bar, over a cup of coffee.
“We’ve been raising money to buy meals from local restaurants at full price and provide the people in need,” said Abele as the chatter from early morning diners and wait staff filled the air. She moved here in 2004 from Idaho and was recently inspired by a friend’s Facebook post about a similar project happening in Spokane, WA. Abele wanted to not only bring food to people who need it but also support the local restaurant scene as well. The initial campaign is focused on providing meals for the Eddy House, which helps youth without stable shelter. “Our goal is to provide two weeks of meals to the at-risk youth that they serve,” said Abele, as the waitress brought us each a cup of coffee.
Officially launched on February third, the Reno Gastro Project is a licensed non-profit with the State of Nevada. They have also applied for 501(c) 3 status with the U.S. government and their application is pending. Once this happens, all donations will be tax-deductible.
“We’ve supported over 20 local restaurants already,” explained Abele “and our goal is to support each one at a $1,000 a restaurant.” To date, the Reno Gastro Project has supported over 20 local restaurants. This includes Cherry Bomb Catering, who squeezed them in during a busy sold-out Easter Sunday in order to provide an Easter Brunch for the women at Casa de Vida. Other big players have been Two Chicks and Ijji Noodle House.
Abele said participating restaurants and staff have been extremely supportive and some have even set up a donation page on their own websites. In addition to the meals purchased, Reno Gastro Project tips a standard 15% for every order.
“Every restaurant we have worked with has just been amazing,” Abele said as a waitress brought out a large aluminum pan of food and placed it on a table behind us. “It has been really fun for me, just getting to know some of these restaurant owners and how they’ve kind of weathered the storm this last year.” Wherever we are in this storm, groups like the Reno Gastro Project that have stepped up and developed a unique brand of mutual aid help the community survive the storm.
Another thing that the Reno Gastro Project provides is a diversity of quality food. Many times food handed out for those in need are staples like canned goods, bread, and sturdier fruits like apples and oranges. Being able to offer a range of meals augments the experience, particularly for the youth at the Eddy House. “This morning we’re getting Hawaiian fried rice,” explained Abele after a sip of coffee. “I’m guessing they haven’t had that either, it's a lot of fun trying to make it a culinary experience as well.”
Each meal provided helps feed people who do not have access to food, let alone restaurant meals and gives them an experience they most likely would not have otherwise.
Moving forward, the Reno Gastro Project has identified a handful of organizations they want to work with once they complete their goals with the Eddy House. Currently they are looking into a partnership with the women’s shelter, Our Place.
“The other thing we want to do is community events,” explained Abele. “We might buy 100 or 200 meals from a restaurant and just announce that to the people in Reno who might not be able to get a meal from a restaurant otherwise.” Abele hopes as the Reno Gastro Project grows there will be an organization who they are supporting can help facilitate these community meals.
“Just being able to report that we are almost at a thousand meals to Eddy House is just beyond what we were anticipating,” explained Abele as more aluminum trays filled with food were brought out. Being able to do work of the magnitude in a short period of time really stands out to the group behind Reno Gastro Project. Moving forward, they are hopeful and eager to see where the project goes.
“We recognize there are so many good things happening in Reno,” said Abele. “We just hope to add value and provide support to our existing network and hopefully together we can make a dent in food insecurity in our community.”