It came to 
me on a Wednesday. By Friday I had named it, and by Saturday I started. You can read the first blog post I wrote here.You go without. For one day. Those who would otherwise go hungry, are fed.
Not So Fast started in April of 2011 after a serious light bulb moment for me. I was at a concert in Vancouver with my husband – and that was when it hit me. It seemed like most simple and perfect concept ever.
I can go without so others don’t have to. Others can do it too. What if everyone did it?
That first day I committed myself to some form of fasting for one day, every week, for a year (we are well past this now and I am glad to say it is now a part of my routine & every day approach). I knew that if I was to ever suggest to anyone else they should fast, I would have to walk the talk. I had to speak from experience.
Who We Are
Our team is a group of passionate folks who want to make a difference in a big way. Based out of Vancouver, BC, Not So Fast is now a registered non-profit organization that provides not just food to those in need, but also education. To date, we have raised and donated thousands of dollars to various food relief organizations and we are working on plans to launch the platform that will enable everyday folks anywhere to get involved. From the beginning I knew it would be a long process, and it was important that the fasting and giving started right away.
The Cooking Classes
We work closely with a local organization in Vancouver that provides nutritious food to Vancouver’s neediest families (link here) in an effort to both raise funds locally and to inspire involvement elsewhere in other communities. We work closely with the program to see our money go towards purchasing inexpensive, nutritious staples (locally when available), like the food you will find in the recipes on this blog.
Not So Fast is proud to have launched a regular weekly class in partnership with SCC. Here, we work with groups of youth after school to teach basic skills for cooking in the kitchen, and create simple healthy foods to send them home with, as well as recipes they can make at home.
Along with our plans to continue this initiative, we will also be expanding on our goal to provide skills required to live well on less, no matter where (or who) you are. The funds for all ingredients are made possible by the efforts of a few keen community members, looking to make a difference by challenging themselves to go without for the good of others. These initiatives are also made entirely possible through the time and effort of our passionate & dedicated team of volunteers.
Follow Us
If you would like to learn more or get involved, you can follow us in many ways: on Twitter, on Facebook or at our website(in the works). Here you can find all the info you need to be in touch or to join us. You can also drop me a line anytime if you’d like to get involved.
On my own journey to learning to live with less, I have realized that nothing worth doing is ever easy, whether it’s saying no to lunch when you’re fasting, or starting a new organization from scratch, but every step brings you closer to your goal. And every good deed makes our world just a tiny bit better – for all.
We would love to hear from you…you can also make a donation anytime here. Living with (just a little) less isn’t that hard – please stay tuned for more info.
This is soooo inspiring! I love it. Will be following your progress for sure.
Thanks Barbara! We are just getting a whole new look and design as we are getting closer every day! Thanks for the follow!
A truly excellent idea. Particularly poignant today when there are more people dying from obesity than malnutrition.
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/876364-world-now-has-more-people-dying-from-obesity-than-malnutrition
Thank so much! I am excited to see where it goes and am happy to be connecting to others who might share in the Vision. We are truly living in times of severe extremes – like illustrated in this article (thank you for the link, btw, so sobering) – thanks for your kind words, I hope you’ll check in again. We should have our platform ready in a few months if all goes well. Ciao for now!
Amazing idea!! Keep up the good work!
Love this idea! It’s very inspiring and shows that any one can come up with good ideas to do good…
Thankyou!
Woooohoooo! I’m blown away – really. I’m off to investigate your various sites/links.
Oh, derr, I’m already following – hehe!
Oh – thanks – I am so happy you stumbled upon this portion of my project (actually the reason I started blogging! Wonderful! Warning…the NSF website is a skeleton right now and our look is currently is some very capable creative hands – it will soon be redone! Love it – let me know if you have any questions!
Wow Shira – so how does this work? Does yori whole family fast for a day together?
Hey you! It’s been evolving – I just wrapped my year commitment of fasting once a week – through the course of the year I now know what works well and what doesn’t (I consider myself the guinea pig!) We’ve completed much of the formalities of creating an organization from scratch and are in the process of branding ourselves and developing our ‘engagement’ piece. The basis is that people can ‘go without’ anything (from a full fast to skipping your afternoon latte) – what you don’t consume – you then donate the value to the cause of your choice!
It has taken a while to get it all together (I work full time too!) – but we are getting there!
I plan to continue the fasting…but will be modifying my approach slightly.
My kids don’t do it – it wouldn’t be safe, but they can go without something!
it sounds really great, so inspiring, and i can’t wait to learn more about it! Great stuff and I feel a little exhausted for you
Thanks! Send a little Yoga bliss my way! I do miss it but I’m a bit of a workaholic…can’t really help it – I come by it naturally! (hehe)
you need some yoga DVDs. i recommend Yin Yoga to balance out your yang – look up Paul Grilley. It’s a different style of yoga but I love it because it challenged my patience and my muscles. workaholic is good too!
Sounds perfect! Will look into it (have heard pf Yin) – I really need to breathe and be calm. I run around ALL day so that would be good – will look into it for sure! Thanks for the tip!
Seems easy Shira – now that I chanced upon this posting! Amazingly simple concept – may be the hardest thing to follow though.
Glad you found this Ishita! It’s not an easy project…but one close to my heart! Stay tuned for progress! Cheers! xo
Great concept! Let me know if you need a grant writer
Thanks Paris!! I just might
where are you based? I’ll check out your blog! Cheers!
You’re welcome. I’m in Richmond, Virginia USA.
Very interesting. A lot of people (including me) have a passing thought that they would like to make a difference in some way but don’t actually do anything beyond that. What you’ve done is amazing, well done for acting on your impulse, it’s inspirational.
Your ideas align well with those of the Slow Food movement. Have you heard of it? We are student bloggers living and cooking the Slow lifestyle. You should check us out. We are having a recipe contest too that you should enter. http://slowfooduo.wordpress.com/2012/11/12/cooks-pots-and-tabletops-favorite-family-recipe-contest/
Thank you – I have indeed and I am a big supporter
Thanks for the link!