PACKAGE DEAL Christina Michael with boxed meals at a Lee Initiative relief center in Louisville.
Photo: Josh MeridethHOMEMADE chocolate-chip cookies, microwave popcorn, maybe a jar of Cheez Whiz: These were the staples of summer-camp and college care packages for those of us of a certain age. The boxes contained more treats than necessities, though I do recall my grandmother sending several cans of tuna to my sister who had just moved to New York City—in case she couldn’t find any there.
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My grandmother, a card-carrying member of the Greatest Generation, apparently had an originalist view of the care package. It was created in 1945, when 22 U.S. organizations came together under the umbrella CARE (Cooperative for American Remittances to Europe) to deliver lifesaving food to survivors of World War II. The first care packages, 15,000 of which arrived in the French port of Le Havre in May 1946, included surplus army food. Later, the boxes introduced items such as soap and baby clothes. For $10, Americans could buy an official care package with a guarantee that its addressee would receive it within four months.
Though 84% of Americans have heard the term “care package,” according to a 2016 poll conducted by CARE (which now stands for Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere) in connection with its 70th anniversary, only 13% knew how the term originated. In the midst of a global pandemic, the idea has new urgency—and appeal. We’ve rounded up ways to help people in need, whether that means feeding front-line medical workers, getting toilet paper to a relative who can’t get out to shop, or delivering a delicious treat to a friend who just needs a pick-me-up.
Feed Those In Need
In the spirit of the original care packages, organizations are mobilizing donations to feed medical workers, laid-off restaurant employees, the elderly and children who normally rely on school-based meal programs. Leading the pack is World Central Kitchen (wck.org), founded by chef José Andrés in 2010 to organize chefs to feed people in the aftermath of natural disasters. When the coronavirus hit, WCK sprang into action, delivering meals to travelers trapped on cruise ships and, now, food-insecure people around the country.
A WCK partner, Off Their Plate (offtheirplate.org), started in Boston and now operates in nine cities to keep restaurant staff employed making food for hospital workers. Everytable (everytable.com), which launched three years ago to sell fresh, prepared food in underserved areas of L.A., has a pay-it-forward program to purchase meals for seniors, students and the homeless. The Lee Initiative (leeinitiative.org), a Louisville nonprofit, partners with chefs across the U.S. to provide dinners and pantry items to laid-off restaurant workers and has launched a program to support small farmers. D.C.-based Power of 10 (powerof10initiative.com) is building a network of independent restaurants, now in eight cities, to keep workers employed, providing meals to hospitals, youth centers and first responders.
Dinner’s On You
Just procuring food, let alone cooking it, can be a challenge these days. But alternative ways to provision are emerging, and the gift of a kitchen restock will spare its recipient significant stress. Restaurant suppliers that lost clientele now deliver to consumers. In the New York City area, Baldor has all the staples, plus dry-aged rib roasts, cheese plates, even cheffy herbs like Asian chive buds ($250 minimum order, baldorfood.com). Chef’s Warehouse, in 12 metro areas, delivers everything from latex gloves and 25-pound bags of flour to fresh salmon ($250 minimum order for free delivery, shop.chefswarehouse.com). Weekly farm boxes, aka CSAs, are seeing a surge in subscriptions. Find one in your area or, if you’re in New York, Boston or Philly, have a box delivered ASAP by the fast-casual chain Dig ($24, diginn.com), with vegetables from Dig’s own farm and others nearby, plus the option to add eggs, milk and kits to make mac and cheese. Speaking of meal kits, now might be the time to revisit the concept. Blue Apron and Hello Fresh both supply three meals for two people for $60 per week (blueapron.com, hellofresh.com). In New York, Ipsa Provisions delivers high-quality frozen food—no subscription required. Don’t miss the charred pineapple chicken pibil stew and a luxe tuna noodle casserole with wild skipjack and cremini mushrooms (eatipsa.com).
Spread a Little Sunshine
Who doesn’t need a mood booster these days? Coffee is always a good place to start. Cult roaster Coava Coffee out of Portland, Ore., packs its medium-roast beans into a customizable monthly subscription (from $18 per month, coavacoffee.com). Coffee is also part of the Russ & Daughters New York Brunch, a box from the famed appetizing store packed with bagels, cream cheese, lox and chocolate babka for six ($169; goldbelly.com). Or, present a housebound loved one with a virtual vacation to Italy via Talia Di Napoli frozen pizzas, made and shipped from Naples and as good as any you would find there (from $13, taliadinapoli.com). Another great frozen-meal option for those missing the wider world: ramen kits from startup Ramen Hero. Each component—broth, noodles, toppings—comes in its own vacuum-packed bag. All that’s left to do is heat and eat (from $70 for a four-pack with free shipping, ramenhero.com). And when you want to deliver joy with a force best measured in megatons, look no further than the Flour Shop’s Rainbow Explosion Cake Kit ($60, williams-sonoma.com). New York baker Amirah Kassem’s multihued, multilayered cake, an Instagram icon, makes a great weekend baking project. And the payload of candy that comes tumbling out of the center when you slice it makes any day a celebration.
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