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In 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, two brothers from Sudbury, MA, Camden and Colton Francis, then 16 and 12, respectively, were, like other kids around the country, stuck at home.
All the while, they noticed signs of distress around them—including a stark rise in food insecurity exacerbated by the pandemic. “We saw news reports which were showing people waiting in very long lines for food. And we just thought that that was such a heartbreaking issue, such a problematic thing. It really kind of drove us to make a change,” recalls Camden.
Colton, now 14 years old, added, “We just thought that out of all the issues, not having a good meal to eat at night is probably one of the worst things a human can experience, because without food, you can’t do many other things.”
This led to the brothers asking themselves: “What were the next steps? How do you go from having an idea to taking action?”
Two years later, Beyond the Crisis is a fully fledged 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, with a board, a funding model, and a clear, concise mission: “To help address the problem of food insecurity.” Camden serves as founder and executive director; Colton is the cofounder and assistant director.
Since its founding, the nonprofit has donated over $100,000 of food items and delivers as many as 10,000 meals monthly to local food pantries and homeless shelters. They have attracted high-profile board members, and they’ve secured the support of Lady Gaga, who serves, via her own nonprofit, the Born This Way Foundation, as a “goodwill ambassador” for the charity. Recently, the brothers attended a White House virtual summit on food insecurity; and they’ve gotten enviable press, from local news outlets to the Drew Barrymore Show.
So, how’d they do it?
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