Woman Feeds 30,000 Needy People Through Savvy Couponing

You know those couponing shows where you can watch people collect, sort, and savvily use coupons as a way to save more money that you thought was possible? Yeah, those people have nothing on Lauren Puryear. 

The 29-year-old woman already has a full plate. She has obtained four degrees (a Bachelor's, two Master's, and a Ph.D. in psychology), and is a single mom of a six-year-old boy. 

But that hasn't stopped her from setting the crazy goal of feeding 30,000 needy people before her 30th birthday and then accomplishing it in less that half the time she originally intended.

It was Puryear's grandmother that pushed the importance of helping others.

After her grandmother died, Puryear started an organization called For the Love of Others in order to keep that belief alive. 

Puryear began buying food in bulk at stores like Costco or online, but she wasn't happy with the scale of her purchases. So she turned to coupons.

"I started couponing for food items like spaghetti, meatballs, and I was (often) able to get the items for free or for little to no money," she told NJ.com. By collecting coupons from papers and online, she says that she can often feed as many as 150 people for just $20.

When her story first made headlines last October, she had managed to deliver 5,000 meals and was confident about her goal.

And she was right to be! Even though her deadline isn't until September 14, 2017, she reached her goal at the beginning of March! At that rate, she could more than double her initial goal by the deadline. 

Though she intends to continue giving out meals, Puryear says that traveling to so many cities has inspired her to teach others.

She told Scary Mommy, “We were also providing meals for the everyday working American who is living at or below the poverty line so I am starting a new initiative called Push Past Poverty, where I will aim to educate those in need on how to rise above the poverty line by utilizing community resources, coupons, and other tools.”

SHAREher amazing couponing skills with everyone you know!

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