One of the most difficult things about following the heartbreaking situation in Japan is wanting to do something but not knowing where to start. Sure, some of us have the means to write a check to a relief organization but some of us don't. Or we wish for some way to contribute that also touches on our sense of community and shared humanity. What can the food community and home cooks do in times like these? Is holding a bake sale enough?
Last year, when the devastating earthquake hit Haiti, The Kitchn ran a post on raising money for relief through hosting a bake sale. While we were a little surprised that there some controversy about this, basically people responded favorably to the idea.
One way to look at it is that a bake sale can really maximize your contribution. Say you only have $10 to give. You could just write a check for that amount or you could use it to buy ingredients for brownies. I bet you would get at least three times your investment after selling your brownies, maybe even more.
Here's more inspiration: When San Francisco Bay Area chef Samin Nosrot started her campaign to hold a bake sale for Haiti last year, she hoped to raise a few thousand dollars. Her final tally was $23,000, which is a significant donation and much, much more than she or several of the individuals who participated in the bake sale could have contributed on their own. This year she is organizing again for Japan. Her blog entry is a good starting point for organizing one of your own in your community.
But just as important as the mathematics of our donations is the fact that in the face of deep sadness and despair, we choose not to hide behind cynicism but to act from the heart. This takes courage and dedication. As I wrote last year in Weekend Meditation: The Bake Sale Response, in times like these we cannot afford hopeless and despair.
Are there any bake sales in your area? Are you thinking of starting one? Do you have other ideas for how The Kitchn readers can contribute? Please use the comment section below to share your information.
Update: Samin let me know that she is available to help you set up a bake sale wherever you live. She hopes to take this national! For more information and to contact her, visit her webpage. So far she has already organized seven locations in the Bay Area for April 2. Check out her page and be inspired!
(Image: David Berkowitz)
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If a bake sale helps you to raise money and connect to your community, then I see no problem with it. However, please put some thought into picking the organisation to which you will donate. Here's a wonderful blog post on the Dos and don'ts of disaster relief donations: http://goodintents.org/disaster/the-dos-and-donts-of-disaster-donations
Ditto, I was ready to donate but think I will do more research on what to do for Japan.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/16/world/asia/16charity.html
For those who may be interested in organizing a bake sale in May for Komen, Bake for Hope is an organization that sort of has a "franchise" arrangement that is easy to work with (they provide templates for flyers, labels, etc). I've worked with this org for the past two years, though may not continue due to wanting to focus on other causes instead. http://bakeforhope.org/
I'm looking specifically for a microloan program that would help small business owners re-establish their businesses - if anyone hears of one - please post!
I believe Samin spells her last name Nosrat and, if you ever have the chance to take one of her classes, she's a terrific instructor!
I'll help with the bake sale - go Samin!
Others have already posted the links I thought of on reading this post. Thanks to both of those commenters.
The reports from Japan are horrific, and we want to help, but there might not be anything we can do. The Japanese government was prepared for a disaster like this, and they haven't asked for money. This isn't like Haiti, where there was a need for funds. (But even then I remember people wanting to go help, without a thought for whether or not that was *actually* helpful, just showing up.)
The earthquake and tsunami in Japan were catastrophic, but the country is managing to take care of itself. Maybe use this event as inspiration to learn about crises and emergencies that aren't in the media spotlight, but that need our help. (80,000 refugees from Ivory Coast have fled into Liberia in the wake of violence and instability, for example. 45,000 refugees in the last three weeks alone.)
To clarify my previous post - I'm looking for microloan programs specifically to benefit ~~Japanese citizens~~ affected by the quake/tsunami/nuclear events.
BTW, other ways for people to do something similar, to help raise funds for Japan if you don't bake (though you can always buy the delicious baked goods!):
* if you have a hobby and are part of a hobby community, look through your stuff, agree to sell your 'extras' or completed projects in order to raise money for donation. For Haiti, in one circle I belong to, we raised over $3K.
* host a breakfast or dinner - think of the old-fashioned waffle breakfasts or spaghetti feeds. It doesn't have to be for 100 people - your Sunday breakfast or dinner works just fine - $10, $50, hundreds, thousands, it all counts.
* if you're a gardener, start a garden plant or seedling sale, it's about to be Spring so perfect timing for a plant sale!
* if you have a service, say you're great at teaching guitar or knitting, offer a set number of lessons or classes to the fundraising effort.
* declutter your house or apartment and sell your unwanteds on eBay, Craigslist, Cheapcycle, or have a garage sale.
* sell your homemade jam, cookies, truffles!
If we just raised and donated $10 for each person in our country, citizen or living/working here (and those of us who can donate can double or triple our donations to offset those who can't donate due to poverty), we could easily raise a few BILLION for relief and rebuilding efforts. If we start a tradition of fundraising circles, with the aim to do just this (raise $10/per), we can keep people motivated to participate small scale to emergency relief efforts whenever they occur.
Yay Samin!
nw8fg3
Sorry about that, what I meant to type was "does anyone know of good, cheap recipes to make if someone was interested in pursuing this"?
I'd echo what surplusj says, and add this: if you want to give, please do. But please don't earmark your donations for the Japanese disaster. Some organisations (like the Japanese Red Cross) have already said that they have enough funds. If you give without insisting that your funds go to Japan, the organisation will be able to use the money where it needs it the most.
I just read on Samin's blog that the total is $124K and counting - it was an amazing bake sale!