Meet Erin Stieglitz | Founder & Chief Rescue Officer, Bagel Rescue

We had the good fortune of connecting with Erin Stieglitz and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Erin, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting a non-profit?
Bagel Rescue was born to help solve two problems: bagel waste and food insecurity. But I didn’t wake up one day and decide to start a non-profit with bagels. In fact, I didn’t really know anything about running a non-profit.

It all fell in my lap during the holiday season of 2020 when my family wanted to provide a breakfast for the doctors and nurses at Northside Hospital who were working hard and risking their lives to take care of COVID patients. I planned to get bulk bagels, spreads, OJ, etc… and bring it to the hospital. My son, who was nine at the time, asked why we don’t get bagels from our favorite bagel shop down the street. He called the manager and explained what we were doing. The manager agreed to give us the leftover bagels from the day before our scheduled breakfast. When we arrived, there were hundreds of bagels and the hospital staff was very grateful.

From there I asked the manager if I could take bagels to the hospital weekly and he agreed. Eventually I started calling around to other bagel shops to understand how they handled their bagel waste. Each of them hated throwing away bagels but didn’t have the bandwidth to deal with leftovers at closing time. Bagel Rescue became the responsible solution for bagel shops to put their waste to good use.

Of course the natural fit for food waste is hunger relief so we set out to create a network of feeding programs who could receive the bagels. Now, almost three years later, we have 32 bagel donors in metro Atlanta that donate 12,000-16,000 bagels per week. We have rescued over 1 million bagels, and the numbers grow by the day. We support over 100 feeding programs with bagels, including shelters, food pantries, youth programs, senior apartments, street outreach efforts, medical residences, and more. And we are feeding the environment too: we have saved more than 781,000 lbs of Co2, which is the equivalent to what more than 18,000 full-grown trees could do in one year.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?

As I mentioned, I didn’t set out to start a non-profit or have experience in the field. But being passionate about reducing food waste and supporting hunger relief pushed me to figure things out as I went.

I have a background in Communications with logistical event-planning experience so I felt confident in handling the communication and organization of routes, including working with bagel donors, volunteers, and recipient agencies. There were also pieces that I knew I needed to put in place – like a logo and a website – but I don’t have a graphic design background. Although I still consider myself an amateur, thanks to Canva and Wix, I was able to create a branded look for Bagel Rescue.

The business side of running a non-profit was the biggest challenge for me. I leaned on smart advisors to draft a Business Plan, that included long term planning, a budget, and fundraising strategies. I now have systems in place that hep me run the “business” and I continue to seek advice from those with business expertise.

I have learned so much about the food industry, food waste, food insecurity, food justice, poverty, and the wonderful organizations in that work tirelessly to help their community. I also learned that we can all be part of the solution to repair the world. I’m not solving huger in Atlanta with bagels, but I can do my part and bring volunteers into this web of goodness. And then other people will do their part with additional food resources, other goods, health and wellness resources, and social services, and we can all collectively make a difference.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Spending a weekend hanging out in Atlanta would include visits to The Beltline, Marietta Square, Downtown Decatur, and Downtown Alpharetta, all for food, shopping, and people watching. Walking in Piedmont park, catching a show at The Fox Theater, or immersing ourselves in a new world at the Illuminarium would also be on my list. I enjoy the GA Aquarium and Botanical Gardens, especially when there is a cool new exhibit. My favorite restaurants include Rumi’s, Chops/Lobster Bar, Souper Jenny, True Foods, and of course ALL of my bagel shop donors!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Lots of people deserve Shoutouts in the Bagel Rescue Journey!

My Family: My son Rhys for being curious and having brilliant ideas. My son Declan for being my co-pilot in bagel rescuing. My husband Graham for letting bagels take over our lives. My parents for teaching me the value of helping others and supporting all of my endeavors.

My friend Amy Wilensky, who helped start Bagel Rescue, pushed us to the next level, and continues to serve on the Board of Directors.

Bagel Rescue volunteers and board members who are literally the driving force of Bagel Rescue. They are moving this good work forward, bagel-by-bagel, every day.

Website: https://www.bagelrescue.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bagel.rescue/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BagelRescue