One Table. One box. One Bag. One Bloom. Changes everything!
It started small—just one folding table and a few boxes of healthy fresh foods - once a week. A couple of volunteers showed up with nothing more than hearts full of love and hands ready to help. That first day, we served maybe 15 people. No fancy building, no big trucks, just hope.
Today, All Hands On Deck: St. Louis reaches 75 to 100 patrons, on average, at each Community Food SHARE - six days a week - and the lines are growing. In fact, it’s not unusual to see people arriving hours early just to be sure they’ll get food. A mom with three kids in tow, a senior on a fixed income, a young man navigating reentry after incarceration—they all wait, because they know we will show up with great FREE groceries - because that’s what we do.
This is more than charity. This is a Community
We’re proud to be an all-volunteer, Black-led nonprofit anchored in love, dignity, and justice. We don’t just give out food—we create connection. Our work is as much about nourishment as it is about neighborliness. We believe in doing with—not just for—our Community.
At All Hands On Deck: St. Louis, SHARE stands for Share Health And Resources Equitably—and that’s exactly what we do at every food SHARE - across our entire metro area. Unlike a traditional food pantry where you might receive a pre-packed box of shelf-stable items, a SHARE is a vibrant, welcoming space where each person gets to choose the foods they want and need, fresh wholesome, often organic foods - leaving the rest to SHARE with others.
All Hands On Deck is proud to align our work with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, especially Goal #2: Zero Hunger. Our Community Food & Flower SHAREs, Resource Fairs, and outreach efforts are direct actions toward creating a world where no one goes hungry and everyone has access to nutritious food, dignity, and opportunity. We also touch on Goal 3, Good Health & Wellbeing - Goal 10, Reduced Inequalities and Goal 11, Sustainable Cities & Communities.
Our motto - No Judgement, Just Joy is about dignity, equity, and Community care. Our tables overflow with fresh, wholesome, and often organic items—including fruits, vegetables, bakery goods, dairy, meats, and fish—as well as culturally relevant and unique offerings that reflect the rich diversity of our neighbors. At SHARE, we don’t just give—we build a Community where those facing food insecurity can get what they need and no one is left behind.
Each week, we pop up in parks, special events, and unexpected places with our SHARE tables full of FREE groceries, household supplies, diapers, period products, fresh flowers, and more.
But as our reach grows, so does the need—and the weight is real.
In addition to our volunteers cars, we’ve been renting and borrowing vehicles, storing supplies in temporary spaces, and running operations from phones and folding chairs. Volunteers have driven their own cars until they broke down. We’ve loaded and unloaded boxes in the rain, snow, and blazing sun—because we refuse to stop.
We need help.
We need our own building—a permanent SHARE location where we can organize distributions, offer educational programming, train volunteers, and serve families with dignity and consistency.
We need vehicles—a van or two that can safely transport food, hygiene items, and supplies across the city - without worrying if this is the trip that breaks the axle or burns out the transmission.
We need YOU.
Because we’ve seen what happens when people show up.
We’ve seen a child burst into a grin over a pack of fruit snacks. We’ve seen our elders cry over a bouquet of fresh flowers. We’ve seen patrons who once came for food return to volunteer, to lead, to pour back into the same Community that once fed them.
This is what transformation looks like. This is what love on the ground feels like.
And this Give STL Day, you can be part of it.
Whether you donate $10, $100, or $10,000, every dollar goes directly to the frontlines. No corporate salaries. No waste. Just neighbors taking care of neighbors.
Here’s what your gift can do:
$5 = A box of gloves or a supply of hand sanitizer
$10 = Ziplock Bags to help divide bulk
$25 = A bag of groceries for a family
$100 = Diapers and period products for a week of shares
$500 = Fuel and vehicle rental for a month
$1,000+ = seed funding toward our own All Hands Home
A vehicle or permanent building
And if giving isn’t an option right now? Join us. Come stock tables,hand out fresh produce, or just greet folks with a smile. Because this movement needs all of us.
We are All Hands On Deck. We believe everyone has something to SHARE.
And we’re not waiting on systems to change—we’re building a new one, right here in St. Louis.
Will you help us keep going?
Donate. Volunteer. SHARE.
Visit www.allhandsondeckstl.org or follow us on Facebook and Instagram to get involved.
This Give STL Day, help us turn pop-up hope into a permanent home.
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