In 1989, Stan Curtis founded Kentucky Harvest in Louisville, Kentucky. His organization morphed into USA Harvest as it expanded nationally through the efforts of more than 117,000 volunteers. Its chapters are in over 124 cities, and they serve over 5,200 agencies nationwide, providing over 11,500,000,000 pounds of food (375 million pounds of food every year) to these deserving organizations. Uniquely, they don’t solicit or accept any money from our government. They keep their primary focus on “foodraising,” not “fundraising.” Volunteers pick up surplus food from restaurants, hospitals, and food suppliers, and deliver it to missions, soup kitchens, and food banks.

Glean greatness: It’s all about the food!

Telephone: (800) USA-4-FOOD

http://www.usaharvest.com

Stan Curtis, Kentucky Harvest Project and Harvest U.S.A.

“The year was 1986 and the city was Louisville, Kentucky. Stan Curtis was living the life of the perfect American capitalist with all the outward signs of success: money, nice cars, a beautiful young wife and a successful career as a stockbroker. Gone were the days of his dysfunctional childhood home in Kentucky and the subsequent orphanage where he and his five siblings grew up together. Now 37, he counted himself blessed for the opportunities that gave him a step up along the way—odd jobs, a couple of college classes and several years as a professional tennis player before becoming a successful investment broker. He had found the keys to success: hard work and a positive attitude.

Standing in line at his favorite local cafeteria one December night, Stan eyed a pan of green beans up ahead behind the glass partition. Just as he reached them, a young man came out and replaced the pan with a heaping, hot new one, disappearing behind a door with the old. Stan turned to his wife and said, "Gee, one minute those were my green beans and the next minute, they're gone. I wonder where they went."

After dinner, curiosity got the better of him and he decided to find out what happens to the perfectly suitable green beans. He tracked down the manager and got a very consumer-oriented answer about how they like to keep the pans hot and full. Noticing the manager hadn't mentioned anything about edibility or nutrition, Stan inquired further. He was told Health Department law says once food has been removed from a steam table, it can’t be put back. The beans were no longer of use to the restaurant, so by law they were thrown away. Stan was upset with the waste…”