Nearly one in three local households cannot afford adequate food, according to Rhode Island Life Index. Communities of color and families with children are at greatest risk. One local program is addressing food insecurity and much more in a new way. It’s called the Elisha Project.
“I really wanted to build a nonprofit that worked and acted differently,” said George Ortiz, founder of the Elisha Project, a nonprofit based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. He created the community assistance program that brings fresh meat and produce to the streets.
The drive-thru distributions are what Ortiz has branded a “share market.” Instead of going to a food bank or church pantry, the Elisha Project travels to the community — where people can receive all kinds of essentials with no questions asked.
Ortiz said his own tough childhood was the genesis of the Elisha Project.
“My 7-year-old brother passed away due to malnutrition that was going on in the house it was neglect and lack of community,” he said. Because of his brother’s death, Ortiz’s mother was charged with manslaughter and went to prison. Ortiz came to Rhode Island to live with his grandmother. Eventually he joined the Marines and then started a successful career in marketing. Suddenly his business failed and he lost everything.
While working at a church soup kitchen, Ortiz felt a calling to the ministry and 15 years ago, started the Elisha Project, named for the Biblical profit who performed many miracles. Ortiz says he told his wife, “Let’s do what we can with what we have and let God do the miracles. So we went to Price Rite with $48 and 50 cents, we made 24 lunches. We went to the corner of Classical and where Crossroads Meet and we started giving out meals.”
That humble beginning with bag lunches is now the logo of the Elisha Project. In 2023, the nonprofit distributed more than 6.5 million pounds of food and 2,000 pallets of furniture and household items.
“We’re always hustling to bring in fresh protein. And yes, of course we need shelf stable, but they can get those at the food banks and the pantries, what they can’t get because they lack refrigeration, is what I give,” Ortiz said. “We’re like the Marine Corps, we’re specialized. We can receive a call from fishermen down in Wakefield that says, ‘Hey, we’re a group of spearfishermen and we collect X amount, and we usually have like 40 extra. Do you know families that can take that?’”
The Elisha project steps in as a distributor — Ortiz has dubbed his round-up “food rescue.”
“Food Rescue is whatever you think that you’re going to throw out. We show up and we get days end,” Ortiz said. “I just took it a step further and started knocking on Longhorn Steakhouse, Olive Garden, pizzerias, anything you could think of. So we had Seven Stars Bakery, we had Providence Bagel, we had Stop and Shop. We were collecting from 26 restaurants.”
Perishables from bread to bananas, protein and toiletries are given out at the monthly share markets or more frequent neighborhood pop-ups. The outreach program is headquartered in the former Apex Department Store in Pawtucket, where, in addition to food storage, it is a warehouse for excess, new furniture donated by Costco and provided to low-income families.
One of the warehouse volunteers is Marvin Mayorga, who devotes hours every week to working on the Elisha Project.
“When you do this and you help somebody and they say ‘Thank you, God bless you,’” Mayorga said. “That’s something in your heart.”
