When one cup of soup becomes 5500 cups a day!

By Danny Diliberto

It was a cold afternoon in July 2014, in Long Street, Cape Town. I can’t remember what the guy looked like except that he had a dreadlock hairstyle and was wrapped in a dirty duvet and shouting crazily at the world.

I walked up to him, noticing that this homeless man was in a crazy head space. I asked him if he wanted a cup of soup and he replied ”Yes, please”. As a restaurant owner, I had soup in our kitchen. After I gave it to him, he said, “Thank you”.

I can’t explain why I decided to walk up to him, but it was like an intuitive gut feeling that made me go and offer him the soup. I was intimidated by him, but the ”Godly” voice kept me walking towards him. After the man had the soup, he became calmer, and the shouting stopped.

It was after this interaction that I decided to start a soup kitchen. So, a week later, still a chilly afternoon, I served my very first pot of soup outside my restaurant in the city. One soup kitchen became four kitchens weekly which became 15 000 cups a month and so, Ladles of Love was born.

The charity also began to help other organisations with nutrition for the people they were caring for. In 2015 I learned that kids were going to school hungry, so I began supporting them with food supplies to cook for their children.

Ladles Of Love will be celebrating its 10^th birthday this year and will continue to drive volunteering, creating impact and touching many peoples’ lives with love, dignity and respect. This was an inspirational moment for me as all my life I was told that we must give to get back in return.

I recall another “Godly Conversation” during our president’s lockdown speech when he knew exactly what to do – and that was to get out as much food as I could to as many people as possible.

Not knowing how I was going to do it, or where I was going to get the money to do it, I took his first step to make this happen. Ladles of Love exploded and within weeks was sending out 50 tons of food weekly to those in need. Today, Ladles of Love has become one of the most prolific organisations tackling food insecurity and supporting education through nutrition.

We live in an unequal society where there are people who have and people who don’t have, and kindness is caring for those around you; caring for the environment, for everyone and everything on the planet. So, if you are in a position to give, to help and you can, then you must – it is the principle of kindness and love. IB