"Life is very difficult for people"

The Olivier Salad, Kharcho, vegetable stew with chicken, compote or beer "El", bread. 200 rubles. Veterans and poor pensioners for free "-such an ad appeared on the door of the cafe in St. Petersburg, and then in social networks. In just a few days, the whole city found out about this action, and the old people began to come to a business lunch from all over.

Nobody asks any certificates confirming income. Pension certificates are not needed either. Just sit down at the table, and you will be fed.

Cafe "Czech House", where pensioners will not be left hungry, is a family enterprise. The 25-year-old Alexander Sinyak , the hostess of the institution, came up with the action.

- It all started with his grandfather who came to eat, but he had little money with him. That day my husband worked in the cafe, he felt sorry for him, so he said that for pensioners we have a business lunch for free, ”says Alexandra. - Grandfather went to us for three weeks, every day. And we thought that we should generally feed all the elderly people of our area. And not once, but on an ongoing basis. We hoped that other colleagues would support us, and in each area one or two cafes would appear, where they would also feed their old people. Of course, they did not think that they would now go from all over the city, but, apparently, life is completely difficult for people - and 40 minutes, and spending on the road at one end. We feed everyone, do not refuse anyone.

At first, she recalls, for some reason, grandmothers brought pensioning twists with them. They showed 6,200 rubles, 8 thousand, 10 thousand. And they brought others to the rent, in which there were almost the same amounts. Many of them have already been adults and working children for a long time, but they cannot help their old people, because they themselves barely survive.

The number of Russians with income below $ 10 per day grew to 53.7%, while 13.8% of the country's inhabitants spend less than $ 5 per day

According to Rosstat, about two million working Russians receive a salary below the subsistence minimum. If we take into account that this money is spent on other family members, the number of employees, but still the poor exceeds 12 million people (16.8%), experts of the analytical center under the Government of the Russian Federation calculated. The Analysts of the World Bank said that the share of the economically vulnerable population in Russia exceeds 50%. As follows from the report of the World Bank, the number of Russians with income below $ 10 per day increased to 53.7%, while 13.8% of the country's residents spend less than $ 5 per day.

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On working, but still poor people, Alexander was seen in hospitals and rehabilitation centers. Four years ago, a premature girl was born with her husband. Doctors said that she could not talk, or to speak, or see, do not even dream of school. Parents threw all their strength to raise their daughter. And now it is only slightly lame, otherwise it is an ordinary child.

“We arranged charitable concerts for children, and just with my husband we were handed over the money to parents, because I really wanted to help them,” says Alexandra. - For the elderly, now we are also thinking of organizing a New Year's holiday.

At first they hung an announcement of free business lunches on the cafe door-one person came. After Alexandra posted an ad on social networks, the whole city recognized their lunches with her husband. Now at least 25 people come.

One of the permanent "clients" is 66-year-old Lyubov Volkova . He lives nearby, but she usually does not walk on this side of the street, she saw “VKontakte”, already noted all her girlfriends in the district to have lunch together.

Electricity was turned off for non -payment, I have a penalty of unpaid 15 thousand, and did not pay, because there was nothing

-For me, these business lunches are colossal help. She worked all her life, a veteran of labor, and a pension of 10,200 rubles, an account for a two -room apartment in winter at least seven thousand. That's what you want, and live, - Lyubov Leonidovna sighs heavily. - The electricity was turned off for non -payment, I have a penalty of unpaid 15 thousand, and did not pay, because there was nothing. And there are a lot of people like me in the area, the Housing and Electric Schools and electric consumption have become impudent, prices are constantly raising, they don’t care at all, if we can pay for their services ... It is good that Sasha appeared, they have a tasty and beautiful, and beautifully, it’s just nice to go here.

Lyubov Leonidovna leads a rather active lifestyle. She is a member of the PMC of Human Rights, visits a pre -trial detention center and prisons, a volunteer in several more public veteran organizations. But all this is unpaid activity.

I want to go back to the Soviet Union. Then stability was, calm

- Mostly migrants work for us, and ours are pinched, they cannot get a job. I have two sons, but they themselves would get out, feed their families. And for my girlfriends, with whom we in the 90s, in order to raise children, left institutes to trade in markets, the situation is no better, everyone has small pensions ... You know, I love my Russia very much, but from everything that happens is terribly sad. I want to go back to the Soviet Union. Then stability was calm. Yes, they did not fat, but did not get it, there was enough for the necessary.

Igor Bukharov , President of the Federation of Restaurateurs and Hoteliers of Russia, says that the overwhelming number of restaurateurs has been feeding those in need for many years, but they have not been told about this anywhere.

- Both the society of the disabled turn, and war veterans, and veterans of military operations, and the orphanage - but who just does not turn! Who is asked to feed breakfast, someone’s lunch, to whom to help with a charity dinner, and I did not hear the refusals, ”says Bukharov. - I generally consider assistance to the needy personal affairs of everyone, which should not be talked about.

So far, according to Alexandra Sinyak, about the organization of dinners not on one -time, but on a permanent basis they were called from only one restaurant, in Sestroretsk. Moreover, there were businessmen who were ready to help their cafe with products. Free dinners for pensioners are also arranged by councils in large cities, but there is a queue and you need to bring several certificates to get into it. But then you can eat 21 times a quarter for free, says Lyubov Volkova. Help of products can be obtained in public organizations. For example, the Rus Food Food for five years of existence handed over 20 thousand tons of products and consumer goods to those in need. Now, for example, the fund is collecting "products in the hinterland" for the New Year, which will take the poor and lonely to the villages of seven regions, 15 thousand people will receive assistance.

Anna Kirilovskaya is responsible in St. Petersburg for "Fudshering"-volunteers take food in organizations and distribute it for free to those in need. Initially, explains Kirilovskaya, the task was to save suitable products from ejecting. The project has already involved about 400 volunteers, the products are taken almost every day, 30 organizations give the remains of food on an ongoing basis. In total, in different regions where there is a foodshering and there are Fudseiver teams, more than 133 thousand kilograms of products have already been saved, the project website said.

Many of our volunteers take care of neighbors, large families and old people

- The volunteer himself decides what to do with food further: he can pour the same unsold soup from the cafe into 60 packages, freeze and eat it later for at least two months. But I know that many of our volunteers take care of neighbors, large families and old people. Someone from the given residues of meat himself makes cutlets and distributes his "sponsored", but in general they give us the most vegetables, we distribute mainly vegetables and fruits, ”says Kirilovskaya.

According to her, the organizations whose owners adhere to "green" views and promise to customers fresh products are most willing to help. “Imagine what the bakers from a private bakery evening to throw their unsaturated products into the trash?” Anna recalls. “And to give good food to the one who needs it, everyone is pleased - both the owners and the workers. By the way, they began to appreciate their workers for such careful attitude to their work.”

Alexandra Sinyak says that he does not know what he will do if hundreds of people come to them at business lunches every day. And how long he and her husband will be able to feed them all at their own expense. “We decided that we can, we will be so much,” she says. In the coming days, she is going to go around the cafes of the nearest areas in order to personally convince their owners to make similar dinners for their pensioners. Alexandra has no doubt that someone will respond.

The pensioner Lyubov Volkova believes that Sasha needs to keep records of those who come for dinners, and if there are really too many of them, then to refuse someone.

“I would not want these wonderful good guys because of us, poor pensioners, go around the world themselves,” she says.