Mt. Airy Groceries feeds families in need during the pandemic
PHILADELPHIA -- Mt. Airy Groceries along Germantown Avenue started off as a grassroots effort on one couple's front porch in April 2020. It quickly turned into a donated storefront, and it's flourishing.
The couple and masterminds behind it all are Nicholas Freeman and Jessica Rights, who were both laid off from their catering jobs during the pandemic. Now they use their industry skills to fight food insecurity.
"The flipside of food scarcity is also food waste, which is also a huge problem," said Freeman.
Mt. Airy Groceries is based around volunteers. Freeman and Rights get food donated from wholsalers like Philly Food Works. Food is then delivered to charities like Germantown Face to Face and Philadelphia Interfaith Hospitality Network. Those organizations distribute the food or volunteers drop it off directly.
Mt. Airy Groceries serves anywhere from 100- 400 families every week. People can come directly to the store. The charity helps them avoid high-risk situations like the groceries.
"I noticed how many people were very stressed out because all of a sudden people who had access to food realized they didn't have the access they had before," Rights said.
The couple plans on keeping their operation going as long as possible. For more information go to https://www.mountairygroceries.com.
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