A West Michigan mom is turning her own experience with food insecurity into a growing movement — one little pantry at a time.
Alyssa Curtis founded the Shame Free Collective, a nonprofit operating a network of free neighborhood pantries stocked with food, hygiene items, and baby care essentials across West Michigan. The effort began right outside her Lowell home, where she converted a farm stand into a free pantry after SNAP benefits were cut.
“So often when people need support, whether it’s food or hygiene essentials or baby care, there’s shame surrounding asking for help,” Curtis said. “By creating just direct access in our front yards, it removes the shame and the barriers and the questions that often come with accessing help.”
Curtis said her own upbringing shaped the mission…