During the pandemic, Andria Larson wanted to help those in her community through the trying times, so she started baking pans of lasagna for neighbors. She then co-founded a charity group called Lasagna Love to encourage others to also help neighbors in need with home cooked meals.

Since then, the effort has grown in a big way. The grassroots non-profit Lasagna Love has grown into a network of over 60,000 volunteers who have cooked and delivered more than 750,000 home-baked lasagnas directly to local doorsteps -- feeding roughly three million people in need. It's an amazing arrangement that connects generous home cooks with struggling families, resulting in free, warm dinners and a caring gesture to anyone facing a tough stretch, no questions asked.

While the ingredients still cost money, the ability for volunteers to offer their time and expertise in the kitchen adds great value -- and allows them to do a lot of good for others without breaking the bank.

“Americans haven’t stopped caring," Andria said. "But the willingness to help and the ability to afford helping are different things.”