Project Angel heart plans 18th annual fundraiser April 26

By Mike Yost

April 26, 2012 marks the 18th year of Project Angel Heart’s involvement in Dining Out for Life, an international event that takes place in sixty cities spanning the U.S. and Canada. Last year, more than 300 restaurants with 90,000 diners in the Denver and Boulder area took part.

“We are the largest event internationally,” said Angel Heart’s Events Manager Jessica Shoemaker.

Last year’s event brought in $380,000, translating to 84,257 meals, nearly 20 percent of the total meals delivered last year-all paid for in a single day.

“We would not be able to serve the clients that we do if it wasn’t for this event,” Shoemaker said.

To make certain that the thousands of clients who rely on Project Angel Heart receive their food, a budget of almost $2 million is required. Government grants along with donations from organizations and individuals cover a majority of the cost, but the biggest contributor comes from a single occasion.

“Dining Out for Life is an event where more than three hundred restaurants in the Denver and Boulder area participate and donate 25 percent food and non-alcoholic beverage sales to benefit Project Angel Heart,” Shoemaker said.

Project Angel Heart began in autumn of 1991, when Charles Robbins took a pan of lasagna donated by the restaurant Racines, divided it up into portions, and delivered the food to 12 individuals living in Denver who were struggling with AIDS. That was the start of the organization dedicated to providing meals, free of charge, to those coping with life-threatening illnesses.

Their motto: “A meal with heart gives hope.”

That message of hope resonated in Colorado, the nonprofit growing steadily over the last twenty years. In 2011, over 8,000 volunteers helped prepare and deliver approximately 427,675 meals to 1,863 clients. The organization also expanded its outreach, encompassing 750 square-miles in the Denver metropolitan area and 150 square-miles in the Colorado Springs area. In December of last year, Project Angel Heart delivered its four millionth meal.

To put that number into perspective, since the first pan of lasagna was delivered in 1991, the project has distributed on average nearly 548 meals per day.

Angel Heart’s youngest client began receiving meals from when she was four years old, living with a life-threatening disease when she was not expected to survive past age 6. She is now eight.

“We really truly believe that because of our meals, she has been able to sustain her illness, because we’re not just providing food, we’re providing nutrition,” Shoemaker said.

It takes 1,200 volunteers to make Dining Out for Life a success. Most of the volunteers work as event ambassadors.

“You are a representative for the organization,” says Kyle Copp, a Project Angel Heart volunteer who has been working as an ambassador for nine years. “You talk to them [diners] about our mission, get them excited about it.”

Ambassadors are stationed at participating restaurants, detailing how the organization provides life-enhancing services for 800 clients each week. “That’s what’s so great about being an ambassador,” Copp said.

“You’re there to educate. To pass on a little more knowledge.”

Copp also encourages diners to donate or sign up as a volunteer to prepare food or deliver meals. Even if patrons are there just to dine, Copp tells them that “indirectly, you are helping many, many people.”

The funds raised on April 26 will help clients such as thirty-one year old Laura, living with breast cancer: “I would like for you to know how deeply grateful I am for the care that goes into these meals. I can taste your love and care in every bite! These meals take an edge off of the stress of my situation, and make me feel so cared for. Thank you!” she said.

Meals delivered to Gregory, who lives with HIV/AIDS, enhance his quality of life.

“I thank you ALL for your devotion to providing people like myself with such a wonderful variety of food dishes and soups and desserts,” he said. “I also thank all the children that draw the pictures on every delivery bag! I save them and show my family and friends! The services you’ve provided me have had a tremendous impact on my health and mental happiness! God Bless you all!! Keep up the awesome work!”

For a list of restaurants participating in Dining Out for Life, visit http://www.projectangelheart.org/events/dining-out-for-life.html Restaurant owners interested in adding their establishments to the list can sign up online. To volunteer for Dining Out for Life, contact Keegan Kuhlmann, Volunteer Resources Coordinator at kkuhlmann@projectangel heart.org or by calling 303-407-9415.