In many ways, Iowa is the land of plenty.

We produce about 10% of the entire U.S. food supply.

But some Iowans have difficulty accessing the food they need to live their fullest lives.

In Cedar Rapids, the Groundswell Cafe hopes to make a difference by providing affordable and healthy food in Iowa's second largest city.

We do soups, we do sandwiches, we do salads, we do smoothies.

We're cafe that focuses on organic when we can local food.

We have a farm, so we try to incorporate as much fresh produce.

We cater to the downtown business crowd and professionals and people who live in the condos and also anyone who can't afford a meal can come in and eat for free.

The Groundswell Cafe operates with a pay it forward system.

Customers with the ability to pay have the option to leave a tip that goes in the Pay it Forward fund.

Anyone who needs a free meal can grab a card on their way in and order off the menu.

I have been working at Groundswell for a year and a half.

I want it to look really nice so when people come in here that's what they see.

I've been homeless for a couple of years and so between the derecho and between Covid, I went through a lot of different changes.

The concept is providing dignity and healthy food and a space where people can enjoy themselves when they may be having a hard time otherwise in their lives.

And that may include homeless folks or people who are unhoused.

It may include people who are just going through a difficult time.

I've had people the first time they come in, a lot of times they just they've literally said, I I'm I'm so sorry.

Like, I'm I'm really ashamed to say this, but I don't have any money and I need a meal.

And I'm like, no one should feel bad that they're hungry.

No one should feel like they did something wrong.

No questions asked is the first step to saying you're welcome here.

Whatever reason that you came.

So I was a chef for about ten years and I'd been feeding the very wealthy for a long time.

I was really excited to feed everybody with the same care and quality.

And we also have what we call the community table.

We have puzzles that get started.

It's a good way to break the ice for a lot of people to come in here that might be intimidated by some of the things that are going on or think that they're not good enough to sit in this restaurant, which is not true.

Currently out here with my friend working on a puzzle.

About two and a half months ago me and him met right here, and we've been friends since.

Its actually a great place to meet people in.

Its also a really good place to find out information.

I think it was 2019.

I was staying at the overflow shelter and theyd only been open for a short time.

And one of the guys there was like, Hey, you, you ever been here to eat?

I thought maybe the hipster crowd would probably look at me and think, Oh, stay away from him.

But, no, everybody here was nice.

The Groundswell Cafe is operated by Matthew 25, a nonprofit organization that focuses on the strengths of the Northwest neighborhood.

We're at the Cultivate Hope Corner Store in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

We're just trying to bring healthy food into this neighborhood for people to have a greater access to fresh foods.

We're in an area that's had some crime problems.

That building had originally 100 years ago been a grocery store.

Then it turned into a series of bars and just it was the highest crime corner in the neighborhood.

So when it came vacant, we said, we need to buy this and think about putting something positive in there.

We have a small area for free produce.

We aren't a food pantry, but we want to be able to provide people with fresh produce to help them stretch their food dollar.

Some people have a hard time being able to make ends meet.

We also know food security, strangely in this country is tied to obesity and diabetes because all of this unhealthy food is what low income people often are able to afford and access.

The Cultivate Hope Corner Store is in an area known for being a food desert, which means residents are more than one mile away from healthy, affordable food.

Not many businesses would actually build a grocery store in this neighborhood.

There are a lot of people that live in this neighborhood that have limited transportation or no transportation at all.

So by being right here, people can, you know, walk to the store to get their food items.

Just in my time here, I've seen that, you know, there is a great need in this community and in this area.

A lot of people are struggling.

So doesn't take very much for for one small thing to happen in your life for to become a snowball and you just don't know what to do or where to reach out.

What I see is, you know, we just want to be able to to help people as much as we can.

And we do that through food and we try to do it in relationships with people as well and and try to be neighborly to the people that live in this community and the people that use the store.