The Pantry Partners project involves a systems approach with the longer-term goal to alleviate poverty by equipping the poor and destitute with life-skills and other skills to become self-sufficient citizens. When in a desparate situation where hunger rules one’s daily life, there can be no progress. So we need to feed first, and then work on improving the potential and capabilities of the poor.
To ensure success, we identified four pillars in this project.
Support – Pantry Partners
Support is provided by Pantry Partners to the other three legs. This support includes planning, administration, sourcing of food stock, logistics, and basically to oversee and manage the wider project to ensure it is sustainable, efficient and successful.
Food4Good
Food4Good serves the purpose of a traditional soup kitchen at a central property in Tulbagh. Infrastructure and an equipped kitchen is provided to 14 soptannies (and one gent) to prepare and serve food to the needy.
Reintegration
The poor are often on the periphery of society – the hopeless, dreamless living in utter desperation from day to day. Reintegrating requires an approach with multiple angels and is the domain of professional social workers, psychologist, and educationists (for skills enhancement).
Activities
The guests of poverty at the Food4Good facility will be involved in activities of many different types to encourage participation, and to lay the foundation of self-sufficiency. The hungry and beggars will “earn” their meals through participation – the first step to reintegration.
We do not expect the hungry to pay for their meals. But we also do not believe in a free lunch. By participating in some or other type of activity, the hungry person indicates a willingness to be reintegrated. Participating will break the mould of the vicious circle of poverty – a very tiny step, but at least the first for an eventual full reintegration.