Dear friends and family,

I realize that fundraising in a recession is a bit like ordering steak in a famine.  Nevermind the fact that the resources it takes to produce a steak could feed a few families...

Food politics aside, hunger hurts us all -- and we know there are billions worse off than us! We also know that Americans waste 300 million pounds of good food per DAY, while nearly 35 million of us live in poverty.  Obviously, something's rotten in this state of affairs and it's high time we fix it.

We at Fair Foods rescue over 2 million pounds of good produce every year in Boston. But at least ten times that amount gets dumped. Check out these photos for just a few examples: www.facebook.com/album.php

Fair Foods is currently saving money to buy a large box truck, which would allow us to ship an extra three tons of food per day. A good used truck runs about $4,000, and we're already halfway there. 

I'm hoping to find 100 people to give $20 each in order to match Fair Foods' $2,000 contribution, which has come out of our employees' and executives' pockets.  Our staff works at least 12 hours per day, six days a week.  We're all paid the same - about $300/week take-home pay. In case you're doing the math, this amounts to less than minimum wage, even before taxes - about five bucks and three potatoes per hour. 

Anyone who's been around me the past few years knows how serious we are about moving mountains - we work eight hours a day on paper, but volunteer four more just to keep things running.  Harnessing America's vast surplus takes the hard work of many hands - so I hope you'll break bread with us however you can!

And just because, here's a breakdown of how much food you can help us move with twenty bucks, or about the cost of a dinner and beer:

60 oranges

36 bunches of bananas

24 heads of lettuce

100 Idaho potatoes

50 sweet Vidalia onions

Thank you everyone for your time and generosity. We're grateful for any gift, no matter how small! Much love, and eat fresh for health!

Jason Cammarata

 "Cast thy Bread upon the waters, for thou shall find it after many days"