Help your neighbors get a meal
Pay It Forward connects donors, local restaurants and community organizations, starting in the greater Phoenix area and open to partners anywhere in the US, so neighbors can get a free, complete meal. Here's how each partner helps, and how to start.
Three ways to partner
Restaurant partners
Serve reserved meals at your counter. A neighbor shows a meal code, your staff check it, and you serve the meal. You're reimbursed for every meal you serve.
Community partners
Shelters, outreach teams, food banks, churches and recovery programs pick up meals in bulk from restaurant partners and hand them out, with free help sheets.
Spread the word
Anyone can help. Print cards, signs and flyers with QR codes from the toolkit, and share them where neighbors and donors will see them.
How it fits together
Everyone has one job, and together a donor's gift becomes a meal in someone's hands.
Donors fund meals
Gifts go into one shared pool of meals for the whole area.
Neighbors reserve a meal
Anyone who needs a meal reserves one online with a free account (you'll need an email address), then shows the meal code at the counter. No ID, no paperwork, no questions about need.
Restaurant partners serve it
Staff check the meal code and serve a complete meal, and the restaurant is reimbursed for it.
Community partners reach people without phones
They pick up meals in bulk and hand them out where people already are: shelters, outreach routes, recovery programs.
Our team helps everyone get set up
Admins at the Foundation for Innovation in Society review applications, walk each partner through setup, and check in after the first 30 days.
Not sure which fits?
Tell us a little about your restaurant or organization and we'll help you find the right way to take part. Or start an application now; it's free.
Pay It Forward is a program of the Foundation for Innovation in Society, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.