LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Meat, cheese and lots of lasagna noodles. That deliciousness was on fully display as a new group of Lasagna Love volunteers made a difference, one plate.

 

What You Need To Know

  • Middletown-based Girl Scout Troop 891 volunteered their time, energy and cooking skills to make lasagnas for families in need

  •  Lasagna Love's mission is simple; feed families, spread kindness, and strengthen communities

  •  The girl scout troop made four lasagnas that went to the Newburg and Okolona neighborhoods of Louisville

  • Several troop members said they enjoyed making the lasagnas and giving back to the community
 

To them, every ingredient matters — and it’s all coming together for a heartfelt reason.

“It feels pretty good to know that I get to help people out and I know that food definitely brings people together,” said Addison Lawson, a 17-year-old member of Girl Scout Troop 891, as she started mixing ingredients.

Volunteering has also brought Lawson and her fellow Girl Scouts from the Middletown-based troop together. They gave their time, energy and cooking skills to make lasagna from scratch for Kentucky families — all for free.

“It means another family won’t have to go hungry,” Lawson explained as she mixed ricotta cheese and spices together in a large bowl. “It means that someone having a bad day will have comfort food to assist them.”

This is the first time this troop has volunteered for Lasagna Love. It’s a simple mission: feed families, spread kindness, and strengthen communities. Families can sign up to get a meal, no questions asked. It’s matched to a local volunteer chef, then delivered for free.

“Well, it was an opportunity to volunteer and I have a love for lasagna,” said Lawson about why she wanted to participate.

Dot Turnbull, a volunteer chef, hosted the event at her Louisville home.

In total, the troop made four lasagnas that went to the Newburg and Okolona neighborhoods, along with eight other lasagnas in the freezer Turnbull already made.

Turnbull has cooked for Lasagna Love for almost a year.

“It fulfills a need to do something purposeful, to do something meaningful, to make a difference in people’s lives. I like the personal connection,” said Turnbull, the Central Kentucky Lasagna Love leader, as she hand-wrote a card of kind words for an individual or family.

When Spectrum News reported on Lasagna Love earlier this year, the Girl Scout troop saw it and said they knew they wanted to help.

“It opened my eyes to a need that I didn’t even know was there, a need in our community, because I had never heard of Lasagna Love until you all’s news piece and it just opened my eyes and in turn, I can open my girls eyes,” said Kerry Morris, Troop 891’s Leader.

12-year-old Adeline Gnagy said she really enjoyed it.

“Volunteering is important to me because I am sometimes a genius and I can help people by sharing kindness all over the world,” Gnagy explained as she stirred meat sauce on the stove.

Morris said she wants her Girl Scouts to remember an important lesson from the experience.

“I wanted to expose the girls to the different volunteer opportunities that we have in Louisville,” Morris explained. “It builds character to give to others instead of always receiving.”

If you’d like to sign up to cook a lasagna or receive one for free, visit the Lasagna Love website.

Related Stories