Nyran Stanton is the brains behind the homeless feeds, after the idea came to him when he woke at 4am one morning in January.
Being an event planner with no events due to Covid, Stanton wondered what he could do to put his expertise to use.
“I thought if I can’t do events maybe there’s some people in the community that could benefit from something,” he said.
“I thought why not go out and do some homeless feeds.”
He began brainstorming straightaway and came up with Demon Angel Charities, the demon aspect representing the addictions and flaws humans have, while the angel aspect balances it out with the goodness of humanity.
Stanton called up homeless shelters and went to Christchurch City Mission to announce his idea, as well as talking to a few homeless people on the street.
In two weeks he had raised $458 from donations thanks to a Facebook page he’d set up to promote his idea.
He spent the money at Linwood Seafood, putting on his first successful homeless feed at the end of January.
First Stanton walked to Christchurch City Mission to hand out some fish and chips, before heading over to Latimer Square to find a group of homeless people waiting for him.
He handed out the food and they all sat down together and shared their stories, something Stanton said was “very cool.”
From then on, Stanton has worked on building up his charity to the point of hosting a homeless feed almost every Thursday.
“I think people kind of appreciate that we’ve all had situations in our life where we’ve needed a feed from somewhere,” he said.
“I think everyone has been pretty good about it.”
Born in Australia, Stanton said would often bunk school and take chips to feed the homeless people in public parks.
When he was nine, Stanton moved to New Zealand to live with his uncle and shifted around a bit before settling in Aranui.
Stanton said he knows what it’s like to live in poverty so can appreciate helping out those that need it, especially when mental health is involved.
“There’s a lot of satisfaction talking to someone who’s got mental health problems over food,” he said.
“It’s quite interesting actually, even as a curiosity standpoint, and a giving standpoint so they can talk to you without judgement.”
After a few feeds, Stanton began reaching out to food trucks to see if they wanted to participate at a subsidised rate from money he raised.
Cashin said she enjoys the experience of helping others and has helped Stanton on several occasions before.
“We’ve probably fed maybe 20 to 25,” Cashin said.
“Last time I was here we fed 64 people, they come and they go, they come and sit down and have something to eat, fill their bellies and then off they go,” she said.
Stanton has plans to continue growing his charity and has a goal of raising $200 a month through his Givealittle page to cover food costs.
He said putting the feeds on is extremely satisfying and hopes it is making a positive difference in people’s lives.
• To donate to Stanton’s next homeless feed go to givealittle.co.nz/cause/httpswwwfacebookcomdemonangelproductions
