There’s this verse in the Bible that says, “Do not grow weary in doing good, for in the proper time you will reap a harvest.” And while you may hear a lot of theologians debate what those words mean, exactly, I think maybe we just need to hear this episode from Adina, founder of Take Them A Meal to gain insight. The words of that verse played over and over again in my mind as I listened to Adina in today’s episode. 13 years ago, Adina and her friend Scott started a website - TakeThemAMeal.com - simply to help a mother of 4 in crisis.
With no marketing plan, no big dreams, and no desire to do anything but serve other people like their friend, the website has grown to employ a whole team of employees, sustain 1.5 million visits a month, and facilitate hundreds of thousands of meals taken to families in crisis, grief, or transition every week. As Adina shares the details of why they rejected advertising on their site, the years that she and Scott worked on a volunteer basis, choosing to see the site as a service not a business, their highly empathetic hiring process, and their frequent sending of free meals, you’ll remember, as I did, that maybe hustle and profitability aren’t the highest callings out there. And maybe we’ll all learn from Adina, also, to redefine the harvest for which we hope.
Highlights
- How Take Them A Meal helped me - many times
- Adina's story - how she started it
- How it grew in 3 years when she wasn't even paying attention
- Choosing to reject advertisers and hire employees before paying herself
- Her working relationship with her co-founder, Scott
- Responding to a need with Send Them A Meal, which ships each day and provides full-time salaries for a team
- Adina's best tips on sending meals and staying sane
- Packaging tips
- Adina's favorite recipe to send
- Memories of her grandfather's mashed potatoes
Listen to Adina's Story Now
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Adina's Storied Recipe
More Episodes with Professionals in the Food Industry
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- 176 Riding Waves and Whipping Up Kaiserschmarrn with Anna and Marco at Mellowmove Surf Camp
- 175 Food, Feminism, Fury (and Family!): Geraldine DeRuiter's Tale of the Nesselrode Pie
- 174 Onsite Interview: Exploring 500 Years of History at Auerbachs Keller in Leipzig, Germany
More Recipes to Bring Families in Need
Connect With Take Them A Meal
Instagram: @takethemameal
Pinterest: @takethemameal
Liz Arrieta says
I just want to say thank you for setting up Perfect Potluck. I have used it so much! I've also started reading your blog and it is so helpful! Has great practical ideas! I wondered too if you were Christians as you are service based and aligns well with Biblical hospitality. Praise God if you are! Love your ideas and help.
admin says
Hi Liz!!! Thank you so much for tuning into this episode with Adina Bailey!!! I'll pass all of this along to her and her team!!! Have an amazing day!!! - Becky