2019-05-07
1 小时 11 分钟So my guest today, Larea Gaston, grew up kind of between New York City, Philadelphia, Maryland, and eventually Tucson, where she went to high school.
And after leaving, she found herself drawn to LA.
Not entirely sure why she wanted to be there, but once she was there, soon after, she also found herself in a part of La known as Skid Row.
Skid Row is almost like a small teach, pretty substantial ten city, where there's a very large homeless community that has been there for generations.
It's something that a lot of people have thought about, tried to work on, tried to solve, and yet it remains.
And when she went there, something happened.
It's sort of a part of her from the time she was a small child, was always told that you've got to lead with love and do your part always.
And immediately she found herself in a place of being shocked, but also wanting to be of service, wanting to help out in some way, shape or form.
That started by helping provide food, but also by helping provide love, by seeing people and wanting to get to know them as human beings.
Over a period of years, that has since grown into an organization called Lunch on me, where they feed now 10,000 people on skid row every month and host monthly parties.
Where it's not just about food, but it is about acknowledging everybody's humanity, being of service in a number of different ways, and bringing two different parts of the LA community together to awaken each other.
This story, how she moved into it, how she built something from nothing, and also how she kind of lives a dual life, devoting a huge amount of energy to this part of herself and also fueling it and funding it with almost sort of a one person Robin Hood model with another business business, where she also uses that as a powerful, expressive outlet.
It's a really interesting way to sort of satisfy all parts of her.
Super excited to share this story with you, and be sure to keep tuning in to our special second weekly episode this month as we introduce you to new musicians and singers and songwriters and performers every Thursday throughout the month of May.
Super excited to bring this to you.
I'm Jonathan Fields, and this is good life project.
My biological father's from Brooklyn by way of Puerto Rico, and my mother's from Arizona.
Fell in love and came east, and a baby was created.
Got it.
And I happened to be that child.