Amber and Brad once relied on a food pantry— and now they’re returning the kindness
When Amber and Brad Daugs fell on hard times, they had to rely on a food pantry to feed their family. But once they were on their feet, the couple made it their mission to pay it forward to others struggling to eat
Tears blurred Amber Daugs’ sight as she bent over to gather the cans and boxes that had spilled from the plastic bags she carried out of the food pantry—hoping no one she knew would see her.
Amber had grown up in a middle-class home in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, and had never known food insecurity. But in high school, she’d fallen in with the wrong crowd, and a series of bad decisions led her parents to kick her out of the house soon after Amber graduated in 1998. Amber had dreamed of going to cosmetology school, but once out on her own, with the jobs she could get, she could barely pay for food and rent, much less tuition. She’d been relieved when an old school friend, Brad, whom she’d once given her lunch money to because he had no food, reached out and offered her his couch to sleep on.
But Brad hadn’t been in much better shape financially. When things got so tight for the pair, who eventually fell in love and got married, Amber visited a local food pantry. This is not how I wanted my life to be,
Amber thought sadly as she gathered her spilled groceries. Just then, a man rushed over to help, offering to lend her his metal pushcart to get her items home. Gladly, she accepted, touched by his compassion.
When I get back on my feet, I won’t forget any of this,
she vowed.
An idea takes root
For the next few years, Amber and Brad continued to struggle to make ends meet. Then in 2005, the manager at the restaurant where Amber worked as a cashier quit without notice, and she was promoted to his job. Brad, too, soon got a better-paying job, and the couple was finally able to build a good life for themselves.
But Amber never forgot about their days of struggle. In 2010, with the country in a recession, Amber attended a community meeting and heard a man