At the age of 22, Jaden Smith, the son of actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, has already made a name for himself for giving back. Now, he’s currently opening a restaurant where homeless people can eat for free!
Jaden Smith’s Charitable Path
Jaden Smith has been giving back to the community for some time. The actor-musician started becoming famous for his generous nature when he created the JUSTwater campaign that helped give clean drinking water to the residents of Flint, Michigan. Shortly afterward, Jaden became an ambassador for Project Zambi. For those who don’t know, Project Zambi, founded by Hasbro, helps orphaned children in Africa find homes. Now, Jaden has decided to do it once again, this time helping the homeless of Los Angeles who are struggling to feed themselves. However, while some just donate food or hand out meals, the young influencer has decided to permanently help the community: he’s opened the I Love You Restaurant, a food truck with no prices.
“Our mission is to spread love to communities experiencing food and/or housing insecurity by offering water along with fresh, high-quality, and delicious sustainable meal options,” the truck’s official website states. In just a few days, the truck fed 8,000 of L.A.’s Skid Row homeless population. Jaden said it has become even easier for people to forget the homeless during the pandemic. “You’re thinking about everything happening with COVID-19 and people having to stay home. Well, if you’re homeless, you can’t stay home… So we’ve been donating… everything that we can… vegan food, masks, clothes, hand sanitizer.”
Now, the son Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith hope to spread his message of love across the United States…
His Restaurant Is Feeding The Homeless
Obviously, the world is way far off from returning to ordinary life. Despite that, Jaden Smith is already working to ensure that he can help the homeless population even after the pandemic ends. So, the young star is upgrading his food truck and taking it to a completely new level. Soon, I Love You Restaurant will have a permanent location! Once the restaurant opens, it will work on a pay-it-forward model. That’s right! Anyone can pay for a meal, and that money will be used to pay for the meals of those who cannot afford them.
“It’s for homeless people to get free food,” Jaden said. “But if you’re not homeless, not only do you have to pay, but you have to pay for more than the food’s worth so that you can pay for the person behind you.” Once the Los Angeles location opens, Jaden hopes to open another in New York City, before moving on to other major cities that are experiencing homeless problems. We wish him the best of luck in this incredible endeavor! If you would like to follow along with the progress of the I Love You Restaurant, make sure to follow it on Instagram.
Sources: Cheat Sheet, Good News Network