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A man in Fort Myers is feeding the community for free in the wake of the devastating hurricane. As soon as Hurricane Ian had moved out of Southwest Florida, chef and musician Fritz Caraher started cooking up meals for anyone who was hungry, but feeding those in need in the community is nothing new for him. “I’ve been doing charity events in town for 20 years,” he says. “We want to take care of the community that takes care of us.”
Caraher, 44, reached out to friends and colleagues to help him in his mission to feed the community, but they had to be creative to find food to cook, using donations from local restaurants that are closed after the storm as well as food shipped in from out of town. Many of the people who they’ve fed have donated money for the cause, but Caraher says they need more to meet the needs of the community.
Days after the storm, many are still without power, which means a lot of them aren’t able to cook for themselves even if they have food on hand, which many don’t. Currently, Caraher and his crew are offering breakfast and dinner, but he would prefer to be serving all day. And they’re not just handing out food. They’ve also collected supplies like diapers, baby formula, cat and dog food, clothes and towels, which they’re also giving out for free. And they’ll keep on doing everything they can to help their neighbors until the community can get back on its feet.