LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — Punks with Lunch–it sounds like a name for a rock band, but it’s actually a nonprofit in Lansing that’s been helping the homeless.
“There has definitely been an increase in the unhoused people in our area,” said Julia Miller, co-founder of Punks with Lunch.
Miller has been running Punks with Lunch since 2017. Since its founding, the organization has been providing lunch and resources to the homeless.
“Every other Saturday, we do a sack lunch, and that is typically a sandwich, a fruit–a banana, a snack like a bag of chips or a cookie,” Miller said. “And we have some folks that make hot meals in the winter time.”
But the organization doesn’t stop at food; they also provide harm-reduction services, like getting a person into rehab, providing Narcan–the brand name for a medicine that reverses an opioid overdose–and much more.
“The way we utilize it is primarily in the realm of substance-abuse disorders and providing supplies that will decrease the amount of spread of HIV or Hep C,” Miller said. “It will decrease the chance of someone overdosing.”
Miller said it’s not just about providing material goods; it’s also about showing a person they have someone they can rely on.
“You know, we can build that friendship or that community and hopefully they know that we’re there for them, we care about them, we want them to be safe and that they matter to us,” Miller said.
Punks with Lunch will be meeting next Saturday at 11 a.m. at Reutter Park, 400 S. Capitol Avenue, to hand out food. The organization is still in need of volunteers, so if you would like to help, you can find more info here.
The Fledge on Lansing’s eastside, at 1300 Eureka Street, serves as the general hub for the organization.
