Dez Rodriguez, 33, remembers an empty abdomen. She remembers a mom who offered meals stamps to help a drug behavior. And she or he remembers sharing a home with 10 family members, utilizing the restroom exterior and understanding numerous neighborhood children who felt like she did.
Hungry.
The meals insecurity of her youth has been changed by a drive to feed the hungry. As co-owner of The Newstand, a close to downtown sandwich and low store, Rodriguez collects barrels of meals for the San Antonio Meals Financial institution.
She additionally volunteers for the Meals Financial institution’s Hunters for the Hungry program, which works with native hunters to contribute animals for donation. On Thanksgiving, she’ll volunteer together with her accomplice Web page Pressley on the Meals Financial institution’s kitchen at Haven for Hope.
“I grew up in poverty,” mentioned Rodriguez, an Edinburg native. “My mother was a drug addict. Giving to the meals financial institution is like giving again to my roots, to the individuals and youngsters I knew who grew up with meals insecurity. I do know the place the meals goes.”
The Newstand is one among many native eating places supporting the San Antonio Meals Financial institution in the course of the Thanksgiving holidays. The meals financial institution reached its aim of securing 16,000 turkeys to distribute, partly, by means of the monetary contributions of Dutch Bros., Bakery Lorraine, Whataburger and others.
“I consider Thanksgiving because the Tremendous Bowl of meals,” mentioned Eric Cooper, president and CEO of the San Antonio Meals Financial institution. “It’s essentially the most celebrated occasion round a meal. It facilities round a turkey. After I consider organizations and folks that donate, they most likely don’t understand the complete influence of their generosity.”
Cooper recalled delivering a turkey to a single mom on the East Facet. Unable to supply a Thanksgiving meal for her household, the girl had organized for her two daughters to eat with neighbors who barely had sufficient meals to feed one other individual. The mom deliberate to remain in and skip the vacation meal.
“After I knocked, she got here to the door and simply began crying,” Cooper mentioned. “She mentioned, ‘Now I’m going to have the ability to have my daughters at house.’”
Greater than 30 native Dutch Bros. franchises supported the meals financial institution by means of a Giveback Day, donating $1 for each drink offered. San Antonio-area Dutch Bros. raised $31,438.57.
“The cash donated was to assist fund the turkeys that would be the centerpiece of hundreds of Thanksgiving meals,” mentioned Jasmine Westlund, operator of Dutch Bros. West Central. “We additionally encourage our staff members to volunteer on the Meals Financial institution in the course of the vacation season. Final week, 12 of my managers and myself served on the Haven for Hope facility.”
Bakery Lorraine held a fall dinner and meals and toy drive to help the Meals Financial institution. Whataburger hosted meals drives and supplied monetary help for 2 Meals Financial institution fundraising occasions: Harvest of Hope, a silent public sale, and Turkey Trot, a 5K Run & Stroll held on Thanksgiving.
“Culinary professionals that come to our occasions are shaping us and influencing us,” Cooper mentioned. “I hear cooks specific gratitude that we give them the chance to supply meals to the homeless and so they discover such pleasure in that.”
Giving again
Rodriguez understands the enjoyment. She feels related to those that go to the Meals Financial institution.
“I spent most of my childhood hungry,” she mentioned. “Faculty was the one place I’d have meals. In center faculty, I’d sneak into the cafeteria kitchen and seek for prepackaged banana bread. It was my favourite breakfast. My childhood was fueled by water from the hose and snacks I stole from ‘Juniors,’ a neighborhood bodega.”
In her youth, Rodriguez says, she would take a Lone Star debit card from her mom and purchase sliced bread and chocolate frosting.
“This was my life,” she mentioned. “Day by day for a very long time.”
As Rodriguez grew older, she resolved to be totally different than her dad and mom, to make choices that will place herself for a greater life. She would search for a non secular man who saved The Ten Commandments and lived inside boundaries, or a person who had overcome dependancy.
Enter Web page Pressley, then 12 years sober from dependancy. The 2 met at a fitness center in Austin and have become inseparable. They moved to San Antonio in 2021 to pursue totally different careers. He turned director of culinary operations at Pearl. She labored as a pediatric speech therapist.
Eager to spend extra time collectively, the couple thought of potentialities on a River Stroll stroll in 2023. “What about,” Rodriguez requested, “a espresso store?” Voila. The Newstand was born.
Pressley introduced appreciable culinary expertise to the kitchen. He labored at Emmer & Rye in Austin for almost 4 years and as soon as served as a private chef for Oscar-winning actor Tommy Lee Jones. Rodriguez, in the meantime, left speech remedy to construct The Newstand, which turned a hotspot on Broadway.
“One cause we determined to open store is that we by no means noticed one another,” Pressley mentioned. “And now we see one another day by day.”
Pressley and Rodriguez are launching a second idea, The Dispatch, on East Mulberry subsequent yr. The cafe will showcase Texas and native elements by means of coffees, teas, juices, smoothies, toasts and a brand new pastry menu.
They’ll proceed supporting the Meals Financial institution. Pressley served within the Haven for Hope kitchen final Thanksgiving, making biscuits and washing dishes, whereas Rodriguez labored at The Newstand. Pressley will do it once more on Thursday — however this time with Rodriguez by his aspect.
“I’m tremendous excited to be there this yr,” Rodriguez mentioned. “I really feel like there’s loads of work to do. I wish to assist as many individuals as I can.”
