HOUSTON — Leave it to a teacher to share a lesson in teamwork.
Sarah Watson, a special education teacher at Yes Prep Southeast, is organizing an effort to help local restaurants and thank healthcare workers.
The best part of the plan is that you can pitch in from home.
The organization is called Feed The Front Line Houston and it's a newly created 501(c)3-filed Texas nonprofit that currently has an Instagram account: @FeedTheFrontLineTexas.
Watson got the idea to create the organization based on a similar program created by volunteers in Louisiana. The goal is to raise money through donations and use that money to purchase food from local Houston restaurants. Volunteers then deliver the food as free meals to hardworking healthcare professionals who are fighting COVID-19 at area hospitals.
In their first week, the group raised enough money to deliver about 1,000 meals across Houston.
Houston Methodist, Memorial Hermann in the Texas Medical Center, Ben Taub Hospital, LBJ Hospital and Baytown Health Center are receiving the donated meals.
Just when Common Bond Bakery thought things were beginning to unravel, George Joseph learned about Feed The Front Line.
"We started our plan to reduce salaries and make sure we didn’t lay anybody off," Joseph said.
Joseph connected with Watson through the Nextdoor social media platform and within hours, the two were working to fill orders.
"We usually spend about $10 a meal and we want to make sure that we’re not asking restaurants to cut any of their profit," Watson said.
"These people are working so hard, they’re not even thinking about where their next meal is going to come from," volunteer Colleen Konetzke said. "And so, if we can fuel them, even if it’s a small way," then Konetzke said she will continue to help.
"I had a doctor the other day tell me, 'We love this and please know that this is a marathon and not a sprint,'" Watson said.
They've created a way to actually help feed the healthcare workers who truly are on the front line of the global pandemic.
"They’re dealing with this virus head-on, and it’s scary," Joseph said. "And so, if we can bring them any kind of joy, and allow them to be productive to help people, let’s do it."