Mikey's Meals

A boy transforms his profound gratitude into service after receiving a life-saving operation. Michael Carraway Jr. received a liver transplant at UCSF Medical Center in 2008.  He had been a healthy, active 6th grader participating in sports, music, and Indian dance.  He became sick, and doctors placed him on a list for an organ transplant.  Michael's life was saved by a teenager who was in a traffic accident.  His recovery was swift, and by the time Christmas rolled around, Michael told his mother he wanted to feed homeless people for Christmas.  Mikey's Meals was born.

I prepared dinner and fed 25 people Christmas 2008 to start. In 2009, except for the months of April and May, when Michael was in the hospital, Mickey’s Meals feed 1,175 people in the city of Oakland, CA. Christmas 2009, in addition to providing meals to the homeless, Mikey’s Meals sponsored its first toy drive and handed out 100 gift bags that included toiletries, hats, socks, and gloves to adults.

Mikey's Meals also raises awareness about organ donations.  For his Pay-It-Forward spirit, Michael was recently featured as a CNN Hero for 2012.