Latter-day Saint and Interfaith Volunteers Distribute Food to Over 1,000 Families at Rainbow PUSH Coalition in Chicago, Illinois

Volunteers from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and other organizations gathered September 11 through 13, 2025, at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition (RPC) headquarters in Chicago to feed families facing food insecurity. The JustServe-sponsored service opportunity drew on two semitrucks of food, about 70,000 pounds (nearly 32,000 kilograms), which volunteers packed into grocery bags on September 11 and 12.

Volunteers distributed the food on September 13 to more than 1,000 families. Each recipient received two bags of dry goods and one bag of frozen meat and dairy products. Extra food was taken to a nearby food pantry.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, who founded the RPC, was present on Saturday. His son Yusef, who serves as RPC’s executive director, said the 83-year-old civil rights leader has progressive supranuclear palsy, a condition that affects muscle control and speech. Yusef said his father was happy to see people serving as the Savior would. “[This service project] brightened his face, it put a smile in his heart,” he said. “Feeding the hungry — the mission directly from Jesus Christ — is important to us. We believe this is our duty to continue to serve. All four gospels mention Jesus feeding people.”

Shonnell Hampton, the mother of a 9-year-old boy with autism, received food on Saturday. “[This food is] a bridge between grocery shopping and having to buy necessities so I’m able to get other things instead of food with the money that I need,” she said. “It literally helps me put food on my table for my son.”

Chicagoland JustServe representative Matia Marcucci described feeding the hungry as “the gospel in action.” Marcucci said the event grew out of interfaith dialogue that connected the Church with the RPC. “We started talking about what we could do to collaborate with them to serve the needs of their community,” Marcucci explained. “Food insecurity was the thing that came up. There are a lot of people in these neighborhoods who are really battling through food insecurity. We thought, ‘Let’s do something in September when kids are going back to school.'” Marcucci added that volunteers worked “shoulder to shoulder” with RPC staff committed to making sure families do not go hungry (Matthew 25:35).

The Rev. Dr. Janette C. Wilson, senior advisor to Rev. Jackson and national executive director of PUSH For Excellence at the RPC, called the outreach significant for its intergenerational, multicultural, and multiethnic makeup. Wilson said the effort helped families get through another week without having to work out how to feed a household of four or eight. She also said the organizers hoped other faith groups would join in feeding the hungry, describing the Chicago effort as “our small step.”

Keisha Edwards, Relief Society president of Chicago’s Hyde Park Ward and a key organizer of the food distribution, said it was meaningful to serve in a city she calls home. “It feels good to be in a situation where cultures are mixing and people are coming together from all parts of the Chicagoland area,” said Edwards, who joined the Church three years ago. She said the community’s needs were love and connection, followed by food.

The Church’s involvement is one part of its wider humanitarian work. Its 2024 “Caring for Those in Need” summary reported that the Church spent US$1.45 billion on humanitarian aid, including 3,836 projects in 192 countries and territories, with Latter-day Saints and friends contributing 6.6 million hours of volunteer service.

After the semitrucks arrived on Thursday, the Rev. Bobby Lewis, RPC chief of staff and pastor of the Joy Life Center church in Chicago, spoke about how serving others strengthens relationships with God and neighbor. The Rev. Lewis expressed gratitude to The Church of Jesus Christ for helping the RPC carry out the vision of the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

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