Lisa Helton hopes more people will join her as Lasagna Love volunteer. (Photo by Sheri Trusty)

BY SHERI TRUSTY

Lisa Helton with one of the many lasagnas she baked and delivered to local families in need. (Submitted photo)

OAK HARBOR – When Port Clinton native Lisa Helton moved back to Ottawa County from California in the fall of 2024, she started looking for ways to volunteer in the community. She searched online and discovered that she could impact families in need simply by making an occasional lasagna.

Helton became a volunteer chef for Lasagna Love, an international organization with a mission to feed families, spread kindness, and strengthen communities with a simple concept. Volunteer chefs make a homemade lasagna and deliver it to a family in need.

Lasagna Love connects volunteers with local families who request a lasagna through the website, the volunteer and recipient decide on a delivery time, and the volunteer makes a quick drop-off and leaves.

“All you’re obligated to do is make a lasagna and take it to them,” Helton said. “They call us volunteer chefs. I’m not a chef, but I can make a lasagna.”

Helton found that Lasagna Love allows her to fit benevolence into her busy life. She works remotely for a company that is headquartered in California, and Lasagna Love provides the flexibility to choose when and how often she will volunteer. Volunteers also specify how far they are willing to travel for deliveries. Helton travels up to 20 miles from her

Oak Harbor home, so she has made deliveries in Oak Harbor, Fremont, Port Clinton, Marblehead, and Elmore.

“You can set your own schedule. That’s what I love,” she said.

Helton has learned tips along the way, like asking about dietary needs and preferences and whether they would like the lasagna baked or just assembled. Volunteers can use their own recipes or choose one from the Lasagna Love website. Helton often includes a salad, salad dressing, bread, and cookies, but those extras are not expected.

She has made and delivered about 25 lasagnas in the 18 months she has been volunteering, and she is hoping to encourage more people to volunteer because she sees a need in the community.

“I’ve only been matched twice with the same family, so that demonstrates a need,” she said. “If there were more chefs in the area, maybe we could match more people.”

For more information about being a volunteer or a recipient, visit www.lasagnalove.org. Locals with questions about volunteering can call Helton at 317-752-5554.