One Gen Away is working to fight food insecurity by giving families something just as important as food: dignity.
For Chris Whitney, food insecurity is not an abstract issue.
Years ago, Whitney and his wife, Elaine, found themselves in a food line after their middle daughter was born with spina bifida. Whitney was working in construction at the time, but the family had lost everything. The experience left him with a lasting understanding of the shame and vulnerability that can come with needing help.
Today, as the founder and CEO of One Gen Away, Whitney is working to make sure others never have to feel that way.
The Franklin-based nonprofit’s mission is simple: “Hope, honor and dignity shared through food.” Founded by Chris and Elaine Whitney, One Gen Away purchases in bulk, rescues surplus food, and gives it to individuals and families experiencing food insecurity, with no qualifying questions asked.
“We don't have a food shortage, we have a logistics problem,” Whitney said.
That belief is central to One Gen Away’s approach. Rather than requiring people to prove they are struggling, the organization meets them where they are. Its mobile food pantries and Doorstep Pantry delivery provide groceries to anyone who needs them.
Whitney said many of the people One Gen Away serves are part of the working poor, people who have jobs but simply have too many bills to make ends meet.
“The face of hunger looks like one of your neighbors,” he said.
One Gen Away works to make sure those neighbors are treated with dignity. The organization rescues food from grocery stores, restaurants, farms, and caterers six days a week, often getting it to someone’s table that same night.
For Whitney, that human connection is just as important as what goes into the grocery cart. “No one unseen, no one hungry,” he said.
Sometimes, that means simply listening. Sometimes, it means offering to pray with someone. But always, Whitney said, it means seeing people as people.
“Dignity begins with being seen and heard,” he said.
The impact of that philosophy is evident in the stories of the people One Gen Away serves.
Whitney recalled recently speaking with a man who had once stood in one of the organization’s food lines. Years later, the man stopped Whitney to say thank you.
“I was in your food line, but I don't have to be anymore,” he told Whitney.
Stories like that are what keep Whitney focused on the organization’s larger vision: to “wipe hunger off the face of America by making people love each other.”
That vision is already growing. One Gen Away has expanded to two warehouses, including a new location in Brentwood that allows the organization to receive even more food. Brentwood High School’s football team has also volunteered with the organization, supporting its work and helping serve the community.
The organization’s connection to the Brentwood community continues to grow. Three Ravenwood High School seniors have also supported One Gen Away, while the Brentwood Rotary has been a longtime supporter. For One Gen Away, these relationships are a reminder of how much can happen when a community comes together to serve others.
One Gen Away will host 25 simultaneous mobile food pantries across Tennessee, bringing food directly into communities and making it easier for families to access what they need.
But Whitney’s ultimate dream reaches far beyond numbers. Ten years from now, he wants One Gen Away to feed one million people on a Saturday morning.
Reaching that goal, however, will require a community effort.
Volunteers can help at Saturday morning food distributions or at One Gen Away’s warehouse, where they bag items such as rice and beans and prepare food for distribution. The organization is also looking for more companies to come volunteer, offering businesses a great team-building opportunity. Companies interested in volunteering can email One Gen Awway to explore opportunities.
Donations are also critical to keeping the organization’s work moving. Ninety-six cents of every dollar donated goes directly to program services.
And in November of this year, One Gen Away will share its 50,000,000th meal since its founding, a milestone made possible by the volunteers and donors who have supported the organization’s work.
Whitney is quick to credit the community that has made One Gen Away’s work possible. From volunteers who show up to pack and distribute food to donors who help keep the organization moving, he said the impact would not be possible without the people who continue to give their time, resources, and support.
“We couldn't do it without them,” Whitney said. As One Gen Away approaches its 50 millionth meal this November, Whitney remains grateful for every person who has helped make that milestone possible.
For Whitney, fighting hunger has never been simply about putting food in a grocery cart. It is about reminding people that they are seen, valued, and worthy of dignity, and inviting the rest of the community to become part of that movement.
For more information or volunteer opportunities, visit their website or social media, or reach out via email.
onegenaway.com
volunteer@onegenaway.com
But always, Whitney said, it means seeing people as people. “Dignity begins with being seen and heard,” he said.