Sometimes the simplest things can make huge differences. For people with AIDS and other acute, life-threatening illnesses, who are often too sick to shop or cook for themselves or their families, malnutrition is a daily threat, and proper nutrition can be a lifeline. Community Servings is Boston's free, hot, home-delivered meals program for these individuals and their families. A typical client reported that she had gained 23 pounds in the two months that she had received CS's 2,000 calorie meals. She felt better, looked better, and had enough energy to get through the day.

CS was founded in 1989 by a concerned coalition of activists, religious groups and community organizations who had identified the lack of nutrition services as a critical gap in Boston's support system. In 2004, it expects to deliver a nutritious lunch and dinner each day to 650 individuals and families in 14 communities around Greater Boston. It is also enlarging its client base and serving nutritious meals to people with breast cancer, liver failure, MS or Lou Gehrig's disease.

They need your help to grow. Their model needs to be disseminated to other communities where no similar service exists. Here is your chance to make a very tangible difference in the lives of some people who are living under very heavy stress.