Kaydenz Kitchen Food Pantry Annual Fundraiser

In February of 2017, our quiet little 9-year-old daughter Kayden, started asking "How can we do more to help others? A few conversations later and we were starting to put together small food care packages for the community, out of an extra bedroom in our home.

This upcoming February, will be the 7th Anniversary of our first food care package delivery to the community. Now our lives have completely changed!! Kayden has received multiple awards for her vision of a better community, has learned some amazing life lessons that will last her a lifetime and she has always remained as humble as can be throughout the process. We have formed some amazing partnerships with local organizations/businesses, rolled out new programs that directly impact our most vulnerable community members, and now operate a full community resource center helping anyone in need!

With all of these amazing accomplishments and rapid growth, came a lot of challenges and growing pains. People see the success stories on our news feed and the positive impact we have had on the community. What people don't see are the financial struggles of keeping the rent paid and the lights on, the sleepless nights knowing someone you just helped 2 days earlier passed away on the streets, the 50-75 new requests a week knowing you won't get back to all of them, the voicemails on a Sunday morning from a single parent living in their car asking for a warm place to sleep, the text messages from someone leaving a domestic violence situation with only the clothes on their back, people walking in with kids saying they are hungry and cold, and the list could go on and on. It takes a toll on your soul! These struggles and challenges people face become part of you and you don't just forget about them when you go back to your comfort zone at night. It eats at you, Did I do enough? Could I have given more? Do I need the $10 in my pocket more than they do? The thoughts of "What if" never end!

We don't want people to feel bad because this is what we signed up for. What we often realize is we had no idea how big of a task we were signing up for. Never could we have imagined going from grabbing some extra groceries for a family in need, to running a 501C3 nonprofit Community Resource Center 5 days a week with no payroll! Helping sexual trafficking victims, homeless vets, immigrants new to our country, fire victims, single parents living in cars, kids sleeping outside in tents, referrals for newborn mothers who have nothing as they leave the hospital, are now all part of a normal day!

This adventure has drained all of our personal savings, has created tension at times in our household, and we allowed ourselves to prioritize everyone else's needs over our own. Our biggest weakness is asking for help!

Today we are doing exactly that...asking for help to continue our mission of providing free resources to anyone in the Lew/Aub communities that are in need.

Our family thanks the Lew/Aub communities for accepting us with open arms and continuing to work together with us to help meet the needs of ANYONE who walks in our doors. No explanation needed, Zero paperwork to fill out, No expectations in return. Just one hand helping another!

100% of all donations will go directly to rent, electricity, or food costs! We operate with No Payroll and put all funds back into the community!

#kindnessinspireskindness