Scaling Nonprofit Operations with IoT: The Lasagna Love Case Study

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rhiannon Menn, a concerned citizen, was looking for ways to support struggling families in her community while adhering to stay-at-home orders. She started by making and delivering meals to families in need, a gesture that quickly gained traction and evolved into a national grassroots movement known as Lasagna Love. The initiative grew organically, attracting over 2,000 volunteers across the country within a few months. However, the rapid growth presented a challenge. Rhiannon was manually onboarding new volunteers, a process that involved sending out links and welcome emails, and entering information into their database. This manual process was time-consuming and inefficient, hindering the initiative's ability to scale and reach more families in need.

Lasagna Love is a national grassroots movement that started as a one-woman initiative to support struggling families during the COVID-19 pandemic. The initiative, which began with Rhiannon Menn and her toddler making and delivering meals, has grown into a robust network of over 2,000 volunteers, referred to as 'Lasagna Mamas'. These volunteers help their local communities by making and delivering meals to families in need. Lasagna Love has reached over 4,000 families across the United States, from Lakeside, California to Des Moines, Iowa to Boston, Massachusetts. The initiative has also begun collaborating with universities, companies, and other nonprofits to extend its reach.