Perfect Strangers Launches in Four Cities to Deliver Groceries, Essential Goods to Those at Risk for Exposure to COVID-19

Following the success of related efforts in New York City at the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, Mimi Aboubaker and Elle Wilson have founded Perfect Strangers, a nationwide non-profit that connects the elderly, immunocompromised and frontline workers with volunteers to handle their delivery needs as the country deals with the long-term outlook related to the pandemic.

Perfect Strangers today announced it has launched in Boston, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and the Greater San Francisco Bay Area, including San Francisco, East Bay and South Bay. It will continue to expand into other cities across the U.S. throughout May.

The organization provides free delivery of groceries, prescriptions and other supplies to those at risk for exposure to COVID-19 and a safe opportunity for human connection during a time when many may feel isolated by social distancing requirements and shelter-in-place orders.

In a matter of weeks, the New York efforts Aboubaker led amassed 10,000 volunteers, a group mostly made up of millennial and Gen Z New Yorkers, and completed more than 2,000 deliveries, which resulted in press coverage in NBC Nightly News, Vogue and other media outlets.

“During this time, people can't wait a week or longer to get groceries or medicine delivered. We saw that there were people willing to help, and automated the process of connecting them,” said co-founders Aboubaker and Wilson. “When launching efforts in New York City, we saw a groundswell of support from young people to help their elderly and vulnerable neighbors and others in need; we look forward to serving more cities with the same empathy and enthusiasm."

Perfect Strangers believes it is vital to provide help to those who need it on-demand during this time. Through its network of volunteer partners, including engineers, consultants and technology platform providers, Perfect Strangers has built a website that can connect those in need with volunteers with just one phone call or a few clicks. Requests for delivery services can be found here.

Those in need of essential goods can place an order from a variety of establishments. A volunteer then confirms the order and coordinates payment, which includes both digital and cash options. Volunteers take all safety precautions recommended by the CDC. Recruitment of new volunteers is ongoing, and those interested can begin the quick sign-up process here.

Several companies have partnered with Perfect Strangers to scale the organization nationwide, the most important of which are ensuring the safety of its volunteers and those receiving services. Partners include:

• Checkr, to introduce background checks as part of Perfect Strangers’ volunteer on-boarding process throughout its national expansion. Checkr is a leading provider of background checks for gig economy startups such as Uber, Postmates and DoorDash, as well as volunteer and community organizations.
• Aircall, to stand up a call center able to handle thousands of daily phone orders and customer support inquiries. With offices in New York and Paris, Aircall is a cloud-based phone solution helping companies across the globe manage millions of customer support and sales calls every day.
• Lionbridge, to ensure language barriers do not prevent non-English speakers from accessing their services. For more than 20 years, Lionbridge has helped leading brands connect with global customers by delivering marketing, testing, and globalization services in more than 300 languages.
• Boston Consulting Group (BCG), to enhance organizational strategy around optimal operations, performance management, scaling and expansion and partnerships.

Leading technology service providers offering free premium memberships such as Airtable and Slack have enabled the Perfect Strangers team to scale quickly and automate many processes through a lean impact model.

If you would like to offer corporate services to Perfect Strangers, please contact us at [email protected]. Perfect Strangers can accept donations and investors through its 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsorship partner The Hopewell Fund at Arabella Advisors.

About Perfect Strangers

Perfect Strangers is a national non-profit organization providing free groceries, medications, and supplies delivery to those at risk for exposure to COVID-19. We serve the elderly, immunocompromised, frontline workers and other at-risk individuals.

The organization was founded on the belief that while we can’t all be healthcare workers on the frontline combating coronavirus, small acts of kindness during these trying times are enough to make a meaningful impact in our communities. In our eyes, these selfless gestures between strangers are perfect. Our community of regional volunteers offers free delivery of groceries, prescriptions, and other general errands running for the elderly, immunocompromised, those working on the frontlines, or individuals who are otherwise at risk.

Perfect Strangers also provides food stipends to those who need financial assistance in order to purchase groceries.

If you are interested in volunteering or donating, please visit weareperfectstrangers.org.

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