WE DON’T WASTE
Denver
News: Arlan Preblud, who founded the food recovery and redistribution nonprofit We Don’t Waste 15 years ago, put in his last day as executive director on June 30. On July 1, Kyle Endress put in his first day as Preblud’s successor.
“Founding and leading We Don’t Waste has been one of the most rewarding journeys of my life,” Preblud said in a letter to We Don’t Waste supporters. “Together, we have transformed our local food system into a powerful force for good, rescuing millions of meals and making a substantial impact on hunger and food waste in our community. I am immensely proud of what we have achieved.”
Endres had served as We Don’t Waste’s director of development for the past seven years. “His dedication and strategic vision have played a crucial role in our growth,” Preblud added. “I am confident that under his leadership, We Don’t Waste will continue to thrive and expand its reach.”
Endres, also in a letter to supporters, said he “Couldn’t be more excited” about stepping into his new role and recalled his early days with the Denver-based nonprofit.
“I shared a desk with our director of operations in our tiny office in RiNo. When we’d have staff meetings someone would have to sit on the floor because there wasn’t enough room at the table for our mighty team of six.”
He added: “We’ve come a long way from those days, yet our core concept remains the same: We believe that food should go to people, not landfills, and be accessible to all. We live that out every day through our food recovery efforts, our distribution to nonprofit partners, our nutrition and environmental education and our mobile food markets.”
Endres also praised Preblud for his “Incredible vision for what We Don’t Waste should be. He laid a strong foundation for the work we’re doing today and I look forward to continuing to build upon it.”
About the organization: We Don’t Waste was founded in 2009, after Arlan Preblud, dismayed by the amounts of leftover, yet perfectly good, restaurant and event venue food he saw being tossed in the garbage, took the steps necessary to obtain it for distribution to local food banks. To date, We Don’t Waste has recovered some 50 million pounds of food and distributed it to over 100 hunger-relief organizations that range from soup kitchens and school food pantries to shelters and food banks. In 2019, We Don’t Waste partnered with organizations located in food deserts to bring a mobile food market to their sites. Currently We Don’t Waste hosts eight markets a month, serving thousands of people.
Website: wedontwaste.org
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