The crew at Midwest Buddhist Temple made and delivered 385 sandwich bags to unhoused neighbours in Chicago today!
#buddhism #buddhist #engagedbuddhism#jodoshinshu #shinbuddhism#unhoused#chicago
Discussion
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@EngagedPureLand i know you are meaning well but i don't understand why it's so common to make them food (they most likely never asked for) and not give them money which always will help
@greensofshade Hi, thanks for your concern about making sandwiches vs. giving money to unhoused folks. The Midwest Buddhist Temple has a longstanding relationship with the people of the various tent cities, shelters, and hotels where the sandwiches and personal supplies are delivered. Thus they've been able to speak with the residents and learn from them what sort of needs they have. These bags are definitely appreciated.
1/7
@greensofshade Something to think about is economies of scale. Let's take a sandwich. When an unhoused person wishes to eat a sandwich, they either need enough $ to buy one (~$6 with tax for a 6 inch sandwich in Chicago) or $ to buy ingredients ($3 loaf of bread + $3 mustard bottle + $5 lunchmeat + $5 cheese + $2 lettuce = ~$18 with tax). Choosing the 2nd route costs three times more, but gets you 12 times as many sandwiches, so it might seem better. But now you have the problem of storage.
2/7
@greensofshade Storage and avoidance of spoilage is a major problem for many unhoused people. And if you don't have that problem, you still have to eat sandwiches for a dozen meals straight (which is tiresome). So, neither is a great option, and both assume you have cash in your pocket.
If 385 unhoused people want to buy a sandwich, it will cost them $6 x 385= $2310. If 385 people want to make their own, it will cost $18 x 385 = $6930. And they'll have the storage issues.
3/7
@greensofshade But if the temple pools their money, they can buy the ingredients and do the labour, and feed 385 people for only $578. That's because at scale they can buy everything and hand out the sandwiches ($18 x 385 ÷ 12).
If they just gave away $578, then less than 100 unhoused people would get to eat ($578 ÷ $6 = 96). So the net benefit of handing out food is 289 fewer hungry people than if you handed out money.
4/7
@greensofshade Furthermore, by not having to buy their own sandwich, 385 unhoused people saved $6 each. So it's like donating $2310 in cash back into the pockets of these folks, to now spend on whatever they want.
Thus making sandwiches is profoundly more beneficial--including financially--for the unhoused neighbours. They are also saved from the time of traveling to seek food (they often live in food deserts) and the labour of purchase/assembly in spaces that tend to dislike them.
5/7
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@EngagedPureLand great job everyone! ❤️
@EngagedPureLand This is excellent to hear!
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