Rise with Food

Fighting hunger and supporting underserved communities through compassion and action

Spreading Love Through Food

About

Organization Name: Rise with Food

Catherine Liu

Catherine Liu

Founder & CEO

Catherine Liu is the founder and CEO of Rise With Food, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting underprivileged K-12 students and communities. With the help of local restaurants, she provides meals, essential supplies, and educational resources to those in need.

Ever since Catherine was a child, her home was a place where the door was always open and the table was always full. Her family hosted gatherings where neighbors and friends came together to share home cooked meals. These gatherings weren't just about food, they were about connection. Through these moments, Catherine made lifelong friends, connected with others, and witnessed how a meal could bring joy and unite people.

She saw how food could be a powerful tool for healing, celebration, and community building. The laughter, stories, and warmth exchanged around those meals left a lasting impression on her. When she realized that others couldn't experience the same, she knew she had to do something. Through her love of food and community, Catherine worked together with her peers to help everyone experience the same.

Under her leadership, Rise With Food has partnered with local restaurants to distribute meals, raise money for essentials, and spread awareness. Catherine believes that food is the key to opportunities and a better life. Through her unwavering commitment to Rise With Food, Catherine continues to rise with her community, proving that kindness and collaboration can transform lives.

Yiru Zhang

Yiru Zhang

Co-Founder

Yiru Zhang co-founded Rise With Food with the goal of tackling food insecurity and supporting underserved communities. Motivated by a commitment to social equity, she strives to ensure that all students and families have access to the nourishment and resources they deserve. Through her efforts, she aims to inspire others to take action and make a tangible difference in their communities.

Caren Ye

Caren Ye

Director of Operations

Caren Ye ensures that Rise With Food operates efficiently so that more resources reach the communities that need them most. By streamlining processes and building effective teams, she helps drive the mission to combat food insecurity and reduce inequality.

Jessica C. Liu

Jessica C. Liu

Director of Design

Jessica C. Liu is a national award-winning illustrator, animator, and published author from New York. Twice honored with the National PTA Reflections Film Production Award, she has published three books using art and illustration to inspire compassion and community care. Through Rise With Food, she channels her creativity to nourish both body and spirit—spreading love, dignity, and hope one meal at a time.

Mission Statement

Rise with Food is dedicated to bridging the gap of inequality in our local community and beyond. Through community-led events and targeted fundraisers, we provide nourishing meals and financial support to underserved and underrepresented K-12 students and their families—transforming compassion into action, hunger into dignity, and hope into lasting change.

Why You Should Care

Long Island, NY

8.3% of Long Islanders (about 240,470 people) experienced food insecurity in 2023—an increase from 7.7% the previous year.

Approximately 71,500 children on Long Island face food insecurity

New York State & USA

Over 2.2 million New Yorkers experience food insecurity.

Nationally, 13.5% of U.S. households (about 47 million people, including nearly 14 million children) were food insecure in 2023—the highest rate since 2014.

17.9% of households with children faced food insecurity projectbread.org.

5.1% of U.S. households endure very low food security, with disrupted eating patterns.

Global Scale

According to the UN, 2.83 billion people (35% of the global population) cannot afford a healthy diet; 700 million face hunger daily.

Why This Matters

Food insecurity jeopardizes physical health, educational outcomes, and future economic stability. In affluent areas like Long Island—where nearly 40% of struggling families make too much to qualify for assistance—the needs are often overlooked.

Rise With Food aims to address this crisis locally and internationally—offering both immediate nourishment and building long-term change.

References

Projects

TBD

Our projects are currently being developed. Stay tuned for updates!

Blog

Event Photos and Videos

I'll send you photos/videos that we can upload online. These photos/videos will highlight the events we hold and to show our impact. For example, if we hold an event in NYC, I would take pictures capturing what happened and upload them.

Partnership

DunHuang Beef Noodles

We are grateful for our partnership with DunHuang Beef Noodles in supporting our mission.

Contact

Get in Touch

If you would like to learn more about our work, get involved, or explore partnership opportunities, please reach out to us.

Email: TBD
Social Media: TBD

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