Volunteer Spreads Cheer, Light, and Love

Dorchester native Ashanti Lacet is on a mission to make a positive impact in our neighbors’ lives every month. In May, Ashanti and her team of close friends joined us in the GBFB warehouse to pack Family Meal Boxes.

 “GBFB had availability on my birthday,” Ashanti laughs. “So I said, let’s get the gang together and go volunteer!”

“Everyone loved it,” she continues. “It was so naturally rewarding. People got fed and I’m glad I was able to be a part of it, especially during COVID.”

Ashanti realized she had a passion for making a difference while she was working at a rehab clinic as part of her college thesis. She noticed right away that people appreciated even the smallest gestures.

“They’d thank me just for my time and understanding,” she recalls. “I really loved the feeling of changing people’s day!”

Energized by this experience, Ashanti launched The Lacet Project, her own personal initiative to spread cheer, light, and love. She has brought backpacks full of school supplies to underprivileged students in Haiti. Here at home, she has handed out “blessing bags” filled with toiletries, socks, and other essentials. And she helps to stock community fridges with free food for anyone who needs it.

Ashanti also uses social media to publicize where neighbors can find help and how they can give back, too. “I want to be a resource for the community!” she says.

From all of us at GBFB, thank you for the good you’re doing, Ashanti—and for spending your birthday with us!