The Queen City Umbrella Project Encourages Restaurants to Donate Lost-and-Found Items

Food and beverage vet Johnathan Rhodes wants Charlotte bars and restaurants to donate the contents of their various lost-and-found boxes to go towards the growing homeless population in the city. Many times, restaurant customers leave behind umbrellas, sunglasses, and coats that could be beneficial to those in the tent communities living on the fringes of town.

Rhodes has held every job in the F&B industry from dishwasher to general manager and everything in between. Rhodes said that he noticed that many times, patrons don’t come back for their umbrellas, and the items just pile up.

“Every morning I wake up and I ask myself, how can I serve my community,” says Rhodes. This is how he came up with the idea to start the Queen City Umbrella Project. Rhodes started reaching out to restaurants directly to ask if they could donate the contents leftover by customers to this cause. If the establishment agrees, Rhodes gathers the items and hand delivers them to the homeless population in Charlotte.

Rhodes next pick up will be on January 31. Interested groups can find him on Instagram to request he stop by for a pickup.