Welcome!
WE ARE…
.. a 501(c)(3) non profit organization that provides everything needed to start up and run “recurring food drives”. Usually every month or every other month.
You can donate from home or bring your food to a community gathering. "A Simple Gesture" makes it easy for your community to get engaged!
How A Simple Gesture Works; Its a simple as 1-2-3
It all starts with someone in a community starting a Chapter. You'll find more information about the "Start a Chapter" page on this site. Once a Chapter is set up, here's what happens;
- DONORS REGISTER: They click a QR code or a web link, or just find there way to www.ASGHelps.org. They are asked 3 questions; 1) what's their zip code, 2) what's there address and contact info, and 3) will they also agree to drive (one in six agree to be a driver!)
- Donors and Drivers get an email or text alerting them to the next pick-up date. They confirm they will participate or they ask to be skipped.
- On Event Day, drivers receive a 'least mile' optimized route with turn-by-turn instructions. Their first stop is where the Chapter Organizer provides them the reusable bags (optional) and the last stop is the panty or Food Bank where they drop off the food.
- When our volunteer driver picks up the food, they leave behind a reusable bag (optional) and an info card with a "Needs List" and the next pickup date.
That’s it! ….. It's very simple. Donors love it because it is so simple and convenient. Drivers love it because it helps them find a great way to make a big difference in their community. And the Chapter Organizers love it because the ASG Web App does 99% of the work to prepare and operate the events.
We offer two primary ways for these events to occur;
Driver/Donor Events; This is where we the ASG Web App figures out optimized routes for drivers to pick up food across a wide area, like a city or county.
Community Circle Events; this is where a school, church, club or neighborhood decides to have their own event within their 'community circle'. The ASG Web App reminds the donors to bring their bag to a certain place on a given day, or perhaps to leave it on their doorstep so their neighbor can come by and pick it up.
Either way, these events make a huge impact to your community. The heart warming stories we hear will convince you to get involved. Rather than wait for others to help those in need, A Simple Gesture gets your community members engaged to make a difference.
The Hidden Problem that A SIMPLE GESTURE solves
Its not about the calories, its about the quality of food
Food Banks and pantries do everything they can to help your communities thrive. But have you toured one? On average, 70% of their food is high sugar and it's for a very good reason. This is the food your local grocery stores need to dispose of.
Many states have laws that fine grocery stores to throw away food. The reason isn't what you may expect; it's to reduce methane emissions at land fills. Food waste produces methane gas. To alleviate the problem the government fines grocers. The fix is to ship that food to Food Banks and Pantries. The problem is, for the most part these expiring foods are not healthy. Donuts, cakes, muffins, and fruits make up more than 70%.
People on food assistance are two times more likely to develop diabetes and other serious food-related health problems.
And for us, there is an even bigger problem. One in three single mom families are food insecure, relying on these foods. Children will not rise out of their situation if they are eating unhealthy food. And equally important; a child's self-esteem is greatly affected by obesity and poor diet.
A SIMPLE GESTURE targets healthy foods. And because these pickups are recurring (monthly or every-other-month) the donors really care what goes into the bag. It's not a 'pantry clean out', its donors that want to help people that need assistance get out of their situation.
Many pantries we serve no longer need to buy food. They get all the healthy "center of plate" food they need from this program.
We need to do more than just give people calories, we need to help them get the food needed to thrive.
The ASG WEB APP
Route Optimization
Driver Communication
Donor Communication
Making things simple can be complicated. One way to do it is to”least mile routing“ for the drivers picking up the food donations. We use the same technology as UPS, FedEx and other world-class fleet programs.
Donor Communication
Driver Communication
Donor Communication
Every Donor is asked before every event if they can participate. A quick click of a button confirms they will have a bag out, or if we need to skip them this time around.
Driver Communication
Driver Communication
Driver Communication
About one in 6 donors agree to drive during the registration process. A day before the event they receive their routes. Each route has a button for ‘turn by turn“ directions. The Event Manager can monitor progress across all drivers real-time and make adjustments if needed.
Campaigns
Help Guides
Driver Communication
Signing up donors is everything. Chapters create “sign-up campaigns”. We provide a Site Page dedicated to each one. These are customized to reflect the ‘grass roots local information” donors want to see. QR codes and URL links provide quick tools for donors to access the Campaign Pages.
Reporting
Help Guides
Help Guides
The ASG Web App tracks data to help make better decisions. Event Managers can see which Campaigns were most effective, which donors leave out bags and which often forget. And we provide tools to fix these problems as they arise.
Help Guides
Help Guides
Help Guides
Donors, Drivers, and Chapter Administrators get “Quick-Start Guides” along with more detailed guides to cover everything. We even use AI tools to answer any questions.
Proud to be sponsored by one of the great food companies in the world!
