Everyone’s got a long shopping list for this Thursday’s Thanksgiving meal, but for some that list cannot easily be met … if at all.
The habitually underresourced sometimes cannot fit the added expense of this holiday meal into their tight budget. This is true of a number of MEDA’s 7,000+ annual clients, with household incomes less than half that of the median of expensive San Francisco.
The good news is that 57 Mission families now have the complete meal of turkey with all the trimmings, thanks to tech company DoubleDutch. That business’ philanthrophy was coupled with a donation of 25 turkeys from the San Francisco Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services (MONS).
“We’ve had families asking if we were going to give out turkeys this year, since MEDA has done so in the past. It’s great that DoubleDutch and MONS stepped up to help out and make these families’ holidays special,” explains Mission Promise Neighborhood Family Success Coach Manager Amelia M. Martinéz C. MEDA is the lead agency of the Mission Promise Neighborhood, an education initiative that takes a two-generation approach to family and student success.
Today’s recipients were chosen two ways. One way was via nomination by family success coaches, who work in four Mission schools – and at partner agencies — and are well aware of families most in need. Additionally, MEDA staff gave the names of clients they serve who might need assistance this holiday. This list included nine Mission Techies, a young adult program creating a pipeline for diversity in tech.
DoubleDutch donated the money to buy the 13- to 15-pound turkeys, which MEDA then purchased. The company also asked staff to donate sides, with everything from cranberry sauce and gravy to stuffing and green beans available for families.
DoubleDutch, which has a marketing platform to increase engagement at live events, also sent out two volunteers, J.J. Arnold and Claire Sands, to help with distribution of the food items. Sands even donned a turkey outfit, much to the delight of the youngsters on hand.
It was greatly appreciated that these hard-working DoubleDutch employees took time out of their busy schedules. After all, DoubleDutch was recently ranked the 95th fastest-growing company in North America, on Deloitte’s 2016 Technology Fast 500 – no easy feat.
DoubleDutch until recently had an office near MEDA’s Plaza Adelante, but they outgrew the space and moved to Portero Hill. The tech company especially wanted to help the community this year, considering the shift in political climate, so Nicole Infiesta organized today’s event.
A huge thanks to DoubleDutch: you’ve made some Mission families’ holidays memorable. As one of the recipients, Melissa, stated, “I’m very happy! My family of six will have a great meal this year.”
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