Help Carol's Kitchen Feed theHungry
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Carol's Kitchen is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located in the San Gorgonio Pass of Southern California. Four days a week, our 130 volunteers prepare and feed hot meals to hundreds of men, women and children. We have six kitchens total, located in Beaumont, Banning and Cabazon.
Our kitchen is unique in that we do not turn anyone away. Anybody who comes to our kitchens needing a hot meal, a bag of fresh produce or clothing or housewares, is welcome. We have successfully operated our kitchens with this philosophy for 18 years. Today, we look to the future, leveraging Go Fund Me to help us ensure our longevity through fundraising for operational costs.
Why We Need This Money
We have hired an executive director who manages the day-to-day operations of our six kitchens. This hiring was critical to our ability to meet the needs of our organization as we could no longer depend on a volunteer work force to accomplish this critical management function.
Along with this appointment impacting our annual budget, Carol’s Kitchen has dealt with unexpected setbacks with our usual fundraising efforts, receiving fewer contributions from regular individual donors and through corporate contributions. We are also dealing with significant rises in costs of our budgeted items that include utilities, transportation of our food, rental space and insurance.
Thank you for whatever you can give. No donation is too small.
We will use these funds to pay for operational costs associated with keeping our kitchens running and stocked with adequate food to feed our populations, which include:
* Salaries for our executive director and truck driver to ensure kitchens are operating efficiently, adequately stocked and staffed with qualified volunteers
* Warehouse rental expenses
* Kitchen rentals
* General kitchen supplies
* Fuel and maintenance expenses for our refrigerated truck
Our History
Carol’s Kitchen was started in honor of Carol Ragan, who died tragically in her 20s when struck by a drunk driver. In 1998, Cherry Valley residents Jim and Arlene Ragan started feeding the hungry in honor of their daughter Carol, a service-oriented young woman who died tragically in 1996.
Carol was born and raised in San Bernardino, California, to her loving parents Jim and Arlene Ragan. After attending Aquinas High School and graduating from the University of Southern California, Carol started teaching in Boise, Idaho, where she became active in many organizations involving children. While at USC, Carol and her roommates also “adopted” a man who was homeless at the time. Together, they fed him on alternating days purely out of compassion for his experience.
In 1996, a drunk driver near Bellevue, Washington, struck and killed Carol, who was on the back of a motorcycle at that time.
Carol's ongoing philosophy was to help those less fortunate than herself. The last words in her private journal were, "Ask your heart what is right and follow it," Carol's Kitchen's motto to this day.
On April 21, 1998, Jim and Arlene started feeding the hungry in her honor. That day, Carol's Kitchen served just more than 30 meals in Banning. The very first dish they prepared was chicken enchilada casserole, Carol's favorite. Each year, on the anniversary of its founding, Carol's Kitchen serves chicken enchilada casserole to remember Carol and her service to the community. Since opening in 1998, the kitchen has served more than 700,000 meals.
Please read more about us at www.carolskitcheninc.org
Our kitchen is unique in that we do not turn anyone away. Anybody who comes to our kitchens needing a hot meal, a bag of fresh produce or clothing or housewares, is welcome. We have successfully operated our kitchens with this philosophy for 18 years. Today, we look to the future, leveraging Go Fund Me to help us ensure our longevity through fundraising for operational costs.
Why We Need This Money
We have hired an executive director who manages the day-to-day operations of our six kitchens. This hiring was critical to our ability to meet the needs of our organization as we could no longer depend on a volunteer work force to accomplish this critical management function.
Along with this appointment impacting our annual budget, Carol’s Kitchen has dealt with unexpected setbacks with our usual fundraising efforts, receiving fewer contributions from regular individual donors and through corporate contributions. We are also dealing with significant rises in costs of our budgeted items that include utilities, transportation of our food, rental space and insurance.
Thank you for whatever you can give. No donation is too small.
We will use these funds to pay for operational costs associated with keeping our kitchens running and stocked with adequate food to feed our populations, which include:
* Salaries for our executive director and truck driver to ensure kitchens are operating efficiently, adequately stocked and staffed with qualified volunteers
* Warehouse rental expenses
* Kitchen rentals
* General kitchen supplies
* Fuel and maintenance expenses for our refrigerated truck
Our History
Carol’s Kitchen was started in honor of Carol Ragan, who died tragically in her 20s when struck by a drunk driver. In 1998, Cherry Valley residents Jim and Arlene Ragan started feeding the hungry in honor of their daughter Carol, a service-oriented young woman who died tragically in 1996.
Carol was born and raised in San Bernardino, California, to her loving parents Jim and Arlene Ragan. After attending Aquinas High School and graduating from the University of Southern California, Carol started teaching in Boise, Idaho, where she became active in many organizations involving children. While at USC, Carol and her roommates also “adopted” a man who was homeless at the time. Together, they fed him on alternating days purely out of compassion for his experience.
In 1996, a drunk driver near Bellevue, Washington, struck and killed Carol, who was on the back of a motorcycle at that time.
Carol's ongoing philosophy was to help those less fortunate than herself. The last words in her private journal were, "Ask your heart what is right and follow it," Carol's Kitchen's motto to this day.
On April 21, 1998, Jim and Arlene started feeding the hungry in her honor. That day, Carol's Kitchen served just more than 30 meals in Banning. The very first dish they prepared was chicken enchilada casserole, Carol's favorite. Each year, on the anniversary of its founding, Carol's Kitchen serves chicken enchilada casserole to remember Carol and her service to the community. Since opening in 1998, the kitchen has served more than 700,000 meals.
Please read more about us at www.carolskitcheninc.org
Organizer and beneficiary
Char Lampe
Organizer
Beaumont, CA
Carol's Kitchen
Beneficiary
