Caring for Friends volunteers aim to keep Philadelphia fed
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Imagine having no days off. That's the reality for Abdellah Abdul-Qawi, who chooses to spend his weekends volunteering for Caring for Friends.
Abdul-Qawi volunteers after working a full week in a Northeast Philadelphia kitchen, and he's only one of the many selfless volunteers trying to keep the greater Philadelphia fed.
Seven days a week, you can find Abdul-Qawi cooking in the kitchen of Caring for Friends. He's doing everything from meal prep to the finished product.
"Hunger doesn't take any days off, so I don't take any days off," Abdul-Qawi said.
Abdul-Qawi not only works for Caring for Friends but also volunteers on what would be his weekend.
"We want a person to have a smile on their face when they see me," Abdul-Qawi said. "My goal is to try to feed the needy. When I wake up in the morning, I have the intention of trying to feed everybody."
That need is great.
Caring for Friends provides meals to homebound seniors, veterans, the homeless and supplies food to 250 pantries across the region.
"We have people right here in Philadelphia that eat out of garbage every day and we're responsible for those people," Abdul-Qawi said. "When I put a smile on that person's face, when they say, 'Man, that chicken was bussin.' That's the payoff for me."
Not only does Abdul-Qawi spend all of his time in the kitchen, but he also helps find other volunteers too.
Volunteers like Geanna Williams-Davis.
"If I can't be a part of the solution," Williams-Davis said, "I don't want to be a part."
Williams-Davis uses food from Caring for Friends to feed children at her nonprofit in West Philadelphia.
With the help of her husband, Andre Davis, the couple delivers meals to seniors in their neighborhood as well.
"One of our seniors said, 'Thank you' and he loved me," Williams-Davis said. "And it just feels good."
"It helps my spirit," Davis said, "and I know it helps theirs."
Caring for Friends is now honoring the husband-and-wife team as "Volunteers of the Year."
Abdul-Qawi and his entire family are the "Family of the Year," because on many of the days he's volunteering, so are his six kids.
"For me, it's part of my legacy to let my children know what it's about," Abdul-Qawi said. "You becoming more valuable with the more people you help."
Last year, volunteers at Caring for Friends made nearly four million meals, impacting the lives of more than 300,000 people.
