We have a communal fridge near Rogers Park Metra station. Actually, it’s a little pantry with two blocks of shelves and a fridge in the middle (I believe, I posted the pictures earlier). Local stores sometimes drop off some produce there, but mostly it’s people who have some extras, or leftovers, or just want to share. Anyone can drop stuff on the shelves or in the fridge (labeling containers, if they are not industrially packaged). And anyone who passes by, can take anything out.
Yesterday, although I didn’t need to take a train, I walked there to drop off several unused cans of vegetables, a bag of green beans which we decided not to cook after all, and plastic box with roasted vegetables (we had a lot left, and I forgot to give a box to Anna & Family when they were leaving).
There were several people around when I approached to drop these items off, and the pantry was far from being empty, but the way they reacted at my offering made me regret I didn’t bring all of our leftovers there: oh, they are already cooked? Just warm them up? God bless you!
I recently read about one behavioral experiment: theology students where asked to deliver a talk on Good Samaritan, and half of them were notified right before they were ready to leave, that the talk time was changed and they were late. Then, in the way to their talk all of them were presented with a situation when a stranger was in a distress and needed help. While a substantial part of not-in-a-rush students stopped and tried to help, none of the those who thought they were late, stopped.
Unfortunately, being in a hurry is a major reason for not helping those in need. So many times I would plant to bring my leftovers to the communal fridge, but was in a hurry to catch a train, and knew that I would walk a bit slower with the leftovers, and all these minutes would accumulate, and I can always freeze what I didn’t eat, and in any case, what difference a pint of soup can make? I am nit saying “never more,” but ai will try very hard. I won’t forget the faces of those with whom I talked yesterday by the communal fridge, with their gray wrinkled skin and missing teeth.
We all are Rogers Park. Please forgive me. I will try to be better.
Hettie's Reflections 
I think that it is somehow sad that even charity/free of charge/ donated food is better appreaciated if it is convenience food (just heat, no cooking). You mention there was food on the shelves, but ready to eat is better appreciated. One does not know ingredients, flavour, etc, but they still prefer not to cook themselves.
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It is sad, but in a different way. Food prep requires not only knowing how, but also having minimal pots/pans/utensils which people might not have, and some other extra item, like cooking oil, salt and pepper, which means an extra trip to the store, extra, even small money, and most importantly, extra energy, both physical and mental, which people do not have.
There are some people who are better off and they gladly take fresh produce (it never goes wasted in this pantry), but there are also many for whom having ready-to-eat food is a life-changer.
As I mentioned recently, I see people in a line for free yesterday’s buns in Helsinki, as well as people examining the content of the garbage cans, however, I never saw faces like the ones I saw by communal fridge.
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