December 2, 2025

 

Hi neighbors,

 

Since today is Giving Tuesday – a day built around generosity and community care – it felt like the right moment to share where MGS stands and how neighbors can make the biggest impact in this final week.

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We want to share an honest update about where things stand with Madison Grocery Share and what the next couple of weeks will look like.

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When we launched this project October 29, we had no idea what the response would be. Within days, hundreds of families reached out needing help, and hundreds of you stepped up to support them. Together, this little volunteer-run project matched 585 households made up of 2,190 people with neighbors who could help, supporting people in Madison with more than $139,000 in grocery help. You can see more about your impact here. This is the kind of good that only a community can create, and we’re proud of it. And now, we want to be fully transparent about where we are today.

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Where things stand

Over the past two weeks, no new helpers have signed up. Our last signup was November 16. At the same time, we still have 739 households waiting for help for their over 3,000 family members. MGS has always worked because helpers and recipients entered the system together, in balance. With that balance gone, we feel it’s time to focus on what a sustained model for MGS could look like.

 

We paused new requests November 9 to avoid building a queue we couldn’t reasonably match, and now we’re at the point where we need to thoughtfully close out the project as it currently exists.

 

This doesn’t mean the idea ends – just that this version of it does. For MGS to continue beyond December, it needs a new organizational home with more structure, volunteer power, and long-term support. We want to end with clarity, honesty, and gratitude.

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Our final matching cycle

We will make one final push for helpers for just under a week.

• Final helper outreach: Tuesday, December 2 – Sunday, December 7. Sign up to help here whether you've helped in the past or not.

• Helper form closes: Sunday, December 7 at 11:59pm

• Last match emails sent: Monday, December 8
   

If you’ve helped before and you’re able to help one more time – or share MGS with your circles – it would make a meaningful difference in closing out as many remaining requests as possible.

 

This final cycle will allow us to finish strong and responsibly.

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We are looking for a long-term home for MGS

We believe the heart of MGS – neighbor-to-neighbor support, without red tape or judgment – is something special and important. And we want to be honest: we can’t keep running it at this scale with a tiny volunteer team, but we do think a local nonprofit, mutual aid group, school network, faith community, or neighborhood organization could.

 

If your organization, group, or network is interested in taking over MGS, adapting it into your own model, or talking about what a sustainable structure might look like, please reach out to us at hello@madisongroceryshare.org. We’d love to connect.

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What happens after December 8

After the final match emails are sent:

• Matches can and should support each other and stay connected for as long as and in whatever ways they want. We’ve been so amazed by your stories of meaningful connection.

• We’ll focus on closing out communication loops with helpers and recipients.

• We’ll share one more update with the community.

• We’ll document everything we’ve learned so we can hand the model off to whoever might pick it up.

• If no partner organization emerges, we’ll close MGS with gratitude and transparency.

 

Thank you, Madison. Truly.

This has been one of the most moving community efforts we’ve witnessed. More than 445 neighbors stepped up to help strangers. Parents helped parents. Students helped seniors. People who had a little extra shared with those who didn’t. This project reminded us – and lots of others – that people really are good.

 

Whether MGS finds a new home or sunsets after this final cycle, we will carry this experience as proof of what a community can do when it chooses care. Thank you, Madison, for your generosity, trust, and heart. We’re grateful for you.

 

With love and appreciation,

💛 The Madison Grocery Share Team