Over 58,000 Meals and Counting

Words Tejal Thakkar | Photos Sunday Lunches

Grown out of her home during the pandemic, Kristen Starr began Sunday Lunchbox, birthed out of an acknowledgment that she had a luxury many do not have: the access and ability to give her son a healthy lunch every day.

In November 2020, Kristen was making lunch for her son, and the idea hit her. She says, “In a way, it was a long time in the making in terms of building up the background skills and motivation and passion, but it was really founded overnight.” She got to work that day, executing the concept of what it would take to feed kids who qualify for free meals during school days on the weekend also. She’s proud of the fact that in just under five months, their first delivery on April 25, 2021, fed seven families, and Sunday Lunchbox has not missed a week since.

These days, Sunday Lunchbox has a much larger movement. Kristen and her team of volunteers now serve around 100 families a week out of a large kitchen space where dozens of volunteers help prepare food and coordinate deliveries. 

Kristen explains that they infuse dignity in their process, ensuring that families choose what they want from the Sunday Lunchbox store, rather than the choice being stripped from them. According to Kristen, their store comprises of an assortment of options because of their partners. For example, “Some of our smaller farms want to just give out fresh local produce, but they don’t have a nonprofit arm that can manage relationships and delivery, so they give us fresh meat and veggies that go directly to our store for families to order.”

For Eastsiders looking to get involved, Kristen says, “All of our products are things we came up with by being creative.” She adds, “If you have a skill, or something you’re passionate about and you want to be involved in food justice, we will find a way for you to be part of our family and leverage that skill!” 

Did You Know: According to Kristen, “Sunday Lunchbox is the only food justice nonprofit that has a product line.” They don’t just rescue food and redistribute. Sunday Lunchbox turns produce into a product with a longer shelf life, like a jam, dehydrated produce, or baked goods. And then they have the new product on their shelves for families.