An Alpharetta 13-year-old who has made more than 1,400 sandwiches for The Sandwich Project, a Dunwoody-based organization committed to fighting food insecurity, was honored by Points of Light.
Points of Light Global Network, founded by former President George H.W. Bush to recognize the efforts of individuals and volunteer organizations, honored eighth grader Katherine Kringelis on Aug. 22 as its daily point of light.
Kringelis, who was nominated by her mother, Cindy, for her individual efforts in supporting The Sandwich Project, has been assembling the sandwiches since she was 12. This week she completed her 1,442nd sandwich. While many civic and religious organizations often band together to create meals for food-insecure people, Kringelis, an eighth grader at William & Reed Academy, assembles sandwiches, for the most part, on her own.
“Every Tuesday and Wednesday, I make sandwiches at home, and then they are dropped off to a local host who collects them,” she said. “On Thursday, the host takes them to a local charity that distributes them around the Metro area.”
The Sandwich Project recently celebrated making its 1 millionth sandwich in July. The organization has grown from a grassroots effort to a volunteer-driven force that distributes between 7,000 and 9,000 meals every week. Each sandwich package contains a homemade deli sandwich, fresh fruit and protein bars.
“The act of making a sandwich holds tremendous power to create positive change,” Lisa Hiles of the Sandwich Project said. “We believe that anyone can make a difference, and a sandwich is a tangible way to contribute to the well-being of our community.”
On the Points of Light website, Katherine said her volunteerism with TSP has taught her a lot about the large impact of what might seem like a small effort.
“My experiences as a volunteer have taught me the importance of balancing long-term solutions with immediate actions,” she said. “My work with TSP has been a reminder of the starfish story, in which a beachcomber is faced with thousands of stranded starfish. While unable to save them all, the beachcomber starts tossing them, one by one, back into the safety of the ocean. Like that beachcomber, in making sandwiches, I am doing for one what I wish I could do for all.”
Cindy said she hopes that the attention on TSP will garner more interest and volunteerism.
“I nominated Katherine for several reasons, but a lot of it is because I think The Sandwich Project is one of the best secrets in Atlanta, and I hoped that the recognition would be good for the organization,” her mother said.
