Got $10K for the hungry? So do they

Corey Donaldson is hoping to raise $40,000 in 40 days to help those in need. And until Dec. 10, any amount you donate will be matched up to $10,000 by a donor who has elected to remain anonymous. This is the anonymous donor’s second year of donating $10,000.

Donaldson began helping the Someone Cares Soup Kitchen a year ago when the organization was struggling to raise enough funds for its holiday programs.

Donaldson vowed to raise $30,000 in 30 days. With the help of donors, family members and friends, he raised enough to help the soup kitchen donate 400 backpacks filled with basics essentials for the homeless, 800 backpacks filled with toys and gifts for the unfortunate, and to serve 1,200 people at the dinner.

The Costa Mesa-based soup kitchen serves lunch to homeless individuals and anyone in need every day from 1 to 4 p.m. The soup kitchen also serves breakfast on the weekends and provides dinners for individuals to take with them after lunch. Anyone who visits the soup kitchen for food can eat as many times as they wish, but those who visit can’t be unruly or intoxicated, Donaldson said.

The soup kitchen doesn’t just serve individuals from Costa Mesa, but also ones from Newport Beach, Irvine and Laguna Beach. The organization also provides a tutoring program to at risk kids, Donaldson said.

“So many people think the people that benefit from soup kitchen are alcoholic or drug addicts, and in actuality, 20% are seniors that are on fixed budgets and can’t afford food, 40% are children and then 40% are adults, and there are so many reasons why people are homeless,” Donaldson said.

But last year, when the downturn of the economy impacted the soup kitchen, Donaldson could not sit on the side and watch. The business owner and Costa Mesa resident began helping. And he could not stop.

“This year, I thought let’s do even more,” Donaldson said.

He’s hoping to raise $40,000 and is calling his campaign $40,000 in 40 days.

The money raised will go toward 400 backpacks for the homeless, 800 backpacks filled with holiday gifts for children, and the holiday dinner, which serves 1,200 individuals. And the rest will go into the soup kitchen’s reserve account to help it continue its programs, Donaldson said.

If you’d like to help or learn more about Donaldson’s campaign, visit www.someonecares40kin40days.com

And if you want the money you donate to double, you must make a donation by Dec. 10. However, you may contribute until Dec. 20 — the campaign’s 40th day.