Alex Anning was 7 years old when his family had to drive past a homeless person begging for money because the traffic light had turned green. Anning couldn’t shake the memory out of his head and decided he wanted to make a difference.
For his 8th birthday last year, he led his first grocery drive, with the support of his mother, Kymbria Young-Anning, executive director of Season to Soar, a nonprofit focused on helping the next generation become leaders who serve their communities.
“I’m so honored that an epitome, an example of a leader with a servant heart and global perspective, is my own son Alex,” Young-Anning said.
Alex, who turns 9 Monday, organized another grocery giveaway Friday afternoon at the Montessori School of Englewood. Throughout the event, which saw dozens of residents and parents line up to pick up groceries, Alex never slowed down, darting between volunteers and chatting up attendees while handing out multiple grocery bags at a time.
In partnership with the Illinois Network of Charter Schools, organizers prepared 500 grocery bags stocked with items including bread, pasta sauce, macaroni and cheese, meat, milk and vegetable oil.
Kikanza Harris Scott, director of community impact at the Illinois Network of Charter Schools, said the event was particularly important as community members continue to face food insecurity, including those who have lost access to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. Organizers raised more than $5,000 for the event, Scott said.
“If kids don’t have the food and the essentials that they need, it’s hard to do anything else,” Scott said.
Many people turned out to volunteer at the event, including a group of graduate students from the University of Chicago Divinity School. They helped pack the grocery bags, carry them to tables in an outdoor area near the playground and distribute them to parents and residents who stopped by.
Annika Fuller, 24, volunteered as part of the service project committee at Disciples Divinity House at the University of Chicago. Fuller said practicing servant leadership is central to her denomination, Disciples of Christ.
Alex Anning, 9, distributes free groceries to community members in celebration of his birthday at The Montessori School of Englewood, 6936 S. Hermitage Ave. The giveaway, organized in celebration of Anning’s birthday, provides 500 bags of free groceries to families in the community
Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times
“And so by doing a project like this, it’s really living out what I believe to be my calling,” Fuller said. “My calling is to help people, not just throw money at the problem, but actually like boots on the ground, interacting with people, talking to them face to face, making sure they feel loved and understood and cared for.”
After all the bags were set outside, Young-Anning spoke to the volunteers and kids, sharing that the event was also to honor the recent death of Javits Frimpong, a 15-year-old student from Ghana who was shot and killed in New York City last week. Anning said the death hit close to home because her husband is Ghanaian.
“When things like that happen, we respond by just continuing support into the community and lifting up positive values in youth, which is why we decided to honor Javits ... to send a message to young people that instead of being violent and bullying one another, to be kind and giving,” Young-Anning said.
Abenaa Adjei, 30, whose 8-year-old son attends the school, learned about the event on Facebook and stopped by while picking him up. Adjei said the giveaway was particularly meaningful because she lost her SNAP benefits, which had provided her with $800 a month, in October.
Adjei said she had recertified late and also faced more work requirements that affected her eligibility for the benefits.
“We needed these groceries, so it means a lot to me, and I’m blessed and grateful,” Adjei said.
Alex, who spent the afternoon running around and handing out grocery bags, said he hoped people would leave the event feeling "grateful" and "happy."
"And just have a fun time!" Alex said, before volunteers set out to distribute groceries and the parents started lining up.
