In India, people of all faiths occasionally visit the places of worship of the Sikhs to get a delicious taste of ‘Seva,’ the Sikh principle of selfless service when they give out free dinners to anyone who visits.
In California, Sikh organizers are capturing that culture and using it to help residents of Santa Ana—a large food desert where residents struggle to have routine access to nutritious food.
At one of the longest drive-thrus you’ll ever see, volunteers, some with turbans and some without, load up the trunks of cars with 2-weeks’ worth of produce and groceries—no questions asked.
The organizers, called the Seva Collective, have already handed out 4 million such parcels, but they’re continuing to grow all the time—partnering with farms, businesses, and food banks to distribute as much as possible to those who need it.
“Our goal is to get fresh food, as well as shelf-stable food to every family’s car or cart who comes through the drive,” Bandana Singh, who co-founded Seva Collective alongside Ravin Kohli and Saanand Singh.
“We have cars lined up as early as three or four in the morning, but we don’t start the drive until 9:30 a.m. This shows the volunteer team that the need is there, and we are determined to do whatever we can to help.”
Residents say it’s nutritious, it’s uplifting, it takes away the “dread” and sense of anxiety about having enough real food to feed their families.
Each month, the Seva Collective distributes 60,000 pounds of food to more than 1,200 families and they’re beginning to expand operations to offer books, toys, and clothing as well.
Volunteers come from all backgrounds, but it’s rooted in the teachings of Sikhism: That life is precious, that god has a plan, and that unless you work hard, you won’t come to know what your role in that plan is. Ms. Singh and the squadron of volunteers work hard indeed, and they impart positively on the lives of people.
In a world where there is enough to go round, no one deserves to starve. In the spirit of humanity, let’s continue to T.A.L.K to ourselves.