Hillary Cohen Hirschhorn believes everyone can make a difference when they volunteer!
This Los Angeles-based Producer in the film and television industry has been key to the production of NCIS Los Angeles for years. During COVID, she observed grocery store workers, food sitting on the shelves with no buyers, and foresaw upcoming food shortages.
She had grown up sewing and knew she could help by sewing face masks. Fortunately she had kept scraps of material from the gifts, clothes, and Halloween costumes she had made over the years. She felt fortunate to share those stories of her life with others in this meaningful way. She took her leftover scraps, made over 5,000 face masks, created a group named Call to Crafting, and sold masks during global 12-hour sew-a-thons featuring guests including Issac Mizrahi.
Yet, it wasn’t enough. She couldn’t sit still during COVID and knew she couldn’t return to life as it was before. She had to make a difference. She then began thinking what a different world it would be if we all made a difference every day. Hillary turned her idea into a nonprofit named Every Day Action to focus on people each taking one, small action for another. She wondered where her next, first step would be.
She had been working in the production side of the film and television industry for years and knew it well. She had seen food thrown out every day and told “it was too hard” for the production to give it away.
Interestingly, she often sees homeless people from her work site. “People who are unhoused are people,” she says. Hillary sees people for who they are. She also understands “Giving people choice is also giving them freedom” – even when it’s only a choice of food. She explains if she was homeless and kosher, if someone offered only a cheeseburger, then it is understandable to “feel less seen than before.”
With her industry knowledge, she realized the formalities she needed to properly carry out the mission. The nonprofit bought liability insurance, created a legal contract for studios, and started asking for opportunity. Eventually someone gave them a chance. Hillary, alongside Sam, when both were Assistant Directors on NCIS Los Angeles, bought thermal bags and a cooler then volunteered by walking around the set, saving food, then distributing it to the hungry. Together they saved 175 meals in two days then passed them out to people on the street and in encampments. In its first year, Every Day Action distributed 111,055 meals from 30 film productions. Now, her goals for the young nonprofit include saving food from 100 film productions and have a food truck to distribute 1 million food items.
Listen to Hillary’s podcast episode where she talks about Frances, who was so grateful for the food, “The honesty in her voice…moves me to tears.” Hillary also shares about the “beautiful network of people who enjoy helping people,” practical ways companies can get involved with their communities, and how volunteers can help nonprofits remotely. Follow the Doing Good podcast on Spotify, Apple, Google, Amazon or Red Circle.
