From Buggy to Blessings: A Journey of Faith, Family, and Feeding Nations.

David Lapp is the CEO of Blessings of Hope, a nonprofit food logistics organization that has distributed millions of pounds of food across the US. He is a former Old Order Amish farmer, and he left everything to follow God’s call. Now, David empowers communities to bridge food waste and hunger with the Hope of Jesus Christ.

Life as a Child

I grew up on a 70-acre dairy and produce farm in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in an Old Order Amish family of my parents and eight boys and two girls. I was number eight of ten. Life was simple. We didn’t have things like electricity or modern cars. Instead, we used horse-drawn buggies to get around and gas lamps to light our home. I went to school in a one-room schoolhouse with about 35 other students. All eight grades shared the same teacher, who focused on teaching us how to learn, not just what to learn. I loved that because it helped me understand the principles of learning. Even though my formal education ended after the eighth grade, I have been able to use the tools she taught me to learn about any subject that pertains to my life to this day.

As a child, I spent most of my days helping on the farm or playing outside with my siblings. We lived close to nature, and the work we did was hard but rewarding. I remember how my family worked together to grow food, take care of animals, and keep the house running. We didn’t have things like TV or computers, but we always found ways to have fun. Life was busy, and while it was simple compared to what most people know today, it was full of good memories and strong family bonds.

One of the things I appreciated most about growing up Amish was the strong focus on community. There was value in everyone working together to support each other, whether it was helping with chores, building a barn, or sharing meals during gatherings. Even though we lived without a lot of modern conveniences, our community was close-knit, and that made me feel secure and valued. Looking back, those early years taught me the importance of hard work, family, and sticking together no matter what.

Life as a Teenager and Young Married Life

When I was 13, my family moved from Pennsylvania to a new Amish settlement in Wayne County, Indiana. We were the 15th Amish family to move into the new settlement. Today, there are almost 400 Amish families living in that area. My father wanted to give all eight boys the opportunity to farm, and with high land prices in Pennsylvania, he didn’t see that happening unless he moved to a new settlement where land prices were only a fraction of the cost.

When farms that were connected to our farm came up for sale, dad would buy them to hold until my siblings got married or were ready to start their farming careers. After a few years, we had accumulated multiple farms and for two or three years, my unmarried siblings and I, along with a few hired boys, farmed over 400 acres using horses (we were not allowed to use tractors to do field work). It was a big challenge but also something I look back on and realize helped to shape my future. Each day was filled with hard work, from planting crops to taking care of the animals, and we learned how to make the most of what we had.

In 2003, I married the love of my life, a beautiful young girl named Fannie! At that point, Dad was ready to retire from farming and offered us the opportunity to move onto the home farm and establish our family there.

We had lifelong dreams on the farm. Fannie and I dreamed of building a life that would last for generations, where we’d pass the farm down to our children. But God had different plans for us. Around 2004, we (along with a few of my siblings) started experiencing supernatural miracles and a desire to know God more deeply. It was exciting but also confusing because it challenged the core of what we had been taught by the Amish church.

As our faith grew, we realized that staying in the Amish way of life wasn’t possible anymore. We were gaining a Biblical understanding about God that simply didn’t fit with the teachings of our church community. This led to a difficult decision - either ignore what God was showing us to maintain peace with our Amish community or obey God and risk excommunication. We knew we had to follow God’s calling, even if that meant excommunication. It wasn’t easy to give up our dreams, our way of life, and the community we loved, but we knew we had to follow what God was showing us. Leaving the farm, the culture, and even strong family relationships behind was heartbreaking, but it was the start of a new chapter that would change the trajectory of our future forever.

Through this upheaval in our family, my parents and nine of my ten siblings ended up being excommunicated from the Amish church.

After being excommunicated, Fannie and I moved back to Ephrata, Pennsylvania where we still reside with our twelve children. We have since been able to restore a lot of family ties with my in-laws and are able to bless and respect each other’s different beliefs.

The Early Years of Ministry

In 2006, after leaving the Amish church, Fannie and I (along with four other couples) co-founded Light of Hope Ministries. We wanted to help others who were going through difficult times, just as we had experienced during our own journey. The ministry focused on providing counseling, sharing God’s love, and offering practical help to people who were struggling. It wasn’t always easy to keep pouring out to others when we were questioning how God would meet our own needs.

During this time, we began to hear about how much food was being wasted while so many people around us were in need. Aaron Fisher (one of the co-founders) started helping at an outreach in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, that was giving away food, and he would usually bring some of the extra food home. This was a huge blessing to our families. With five families living in community, and over twenty children among us, we constantly struggled to make ends meet. I remember weeks when we had a $30 grocery budget for all of us (outside of what we got at the food bank).

Before long, we had extra food and were able to share with a few neighbors and families that we knew were in need. Not long after that, the amount of food grew beyond what we could store in our own pantries and overflowed into a three-car garage. A simple act, sharing seven boxes of food per week with a local pastor, became the starting point for Blessings of Hope.

The early years of Blessings of Hope were a time of learning and trusting God to guide us. We had no big buildings, no trucks, and no extra money, but we had a vision to bridge the gap between food waste and hunger.

From the beginning, what made Blessings of Hope special was that it wasn’t just about food. It was about empowering individuals to share the Hope of Jesus Christ. We didn’t just want to meet people’s physical needs; we wanted to remind them that they were loved and cared for. Each box of food we gave out was also a way of sharing the message of Jesus Christ. As the food ministry grew, we began to see how God could use even the smallest efforts for something much bigger than we ever dreamed.

From 2012 to 2018, our growing family lived in an RV and traveled to different communities with Light of Hope Ministries as we brought the message of Hope and God’s love. The RV served as our home and I pulled a travel trailer that served as the base of operations. We traveled from coast to coast, usually staying in southern states for a few months in the winter. With our growing family, living in such a small space required creativity and teamwork, but it also brought us closer together. We often parked on church parking lots or someone from the community would host us at their property.

Looking back, those early years were full of challenges, but they were also filled with miracles. From operating out of a tiny garage to eventually serving thousands of families and nonprofits, God has been with us every step of the way. Those humble beginnings remind me that no matter how small a start might seem, great things can happen when you trust in God’s plan and take the next step in faith.

Rather than trying to educate God on what was possible, we decided that we would always say “yes” when we knew He was calling us to something, then we would ask Him how to carry out the details.

Stepping into the CEO Role at Blessings of Hope

In 2018, we moved out of the RV, and I officially stepped into the role of CEO at Blessings of Hope. By then, we had already outgrown the garage and moved into multiple larger facilities that we had leased, but the opportunities for growth were far greater than we had imagined. We began to see that world hunger wasn’t caused by a lack of food but by a breakdown in distribution—where excess food too often ended up in landfills, the path of least resistance. Tons of perfectly good food were being wasted every day simply because there wasn’t an efficient system to get it from the source to those in need. We knew that if we trusted God and took the steps that He showed us, we could expand Blessings of Hope into a ministry with a far-reaching impact.

One of the first major challenges I faced as CEO was expanding our infrastructure. In 2019, we purchased our first large facility, a 44,000-square-foot warehouse (three times the size of the previous facility). We took this leap of faith with no extra money in the bank, relying on God to provide what we needed. Within six months, the warehouse was already too small to handle the growing volume of food donations and distributions.

By 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the demand for food skyrocketed. Because we had stepped out in faith and invested in growth earlier, we were uniquely positioned to meet the crisis head-on.

During the pandemic, we saw God’s provision in extraordinary ways. While food insecurity rose across the country, Blessings of Hope grew rapidly to help meet the need. We distributed millions of pounds of food to families, food pantries, and outreach programs, partnering with local churches and nonprofits to extend our reach. The pandemic showed us how important it is to have systems in place that can scale quickly. It also reinforced our mission of not only feeding people but also bringing hope to communities during their most challenging times.

Over time, we developed a “Handling Fee” model at Blessings of Hope, where nonprofit organizations contribute a small fee when selecting food. This fee helps offset the operational costs of making food available to them. By doing this, we empower trusted local organizations to serve the needs of their communities, while supporting our sustainability and allowing us to build a scalable, self-funded, long-term solution. Operating on a privately funded model has also allowed us to avoid many of the limitations and restrictions that typically come with government funding.

We also grew to have a strong and passionate volunteer base, filling over 1,200 volunteer positions weekly. Volunteers sort food, pack boxes, stock shelves, and help ensure everything gets distributed efficiently. This team effort became one of the ministry’s greatest strengths, showing how much can be accomplished when people work together for a common goal. Our volunteers allowed us to efficiently operate on a scale I never thought possible when we started in a three-car garage.

In the years approaching 2025, we started to broaden our vision. What would a national organization look like? We started looking at food waste and hunger as national issues, not just local ones. According to the USDA website, we live in a nation that wastes 30-40% of all food produced. This equates to a semi-truck load of food every 13 seconds.

In 2023, we initiated an exciting development: food dehydration. Food dehydration allows us to turn fresh produce into shelf-stable meals. This process retains over 90% of nutritional value, shrinks food to less than 20% of its original volume, and can give fresh produce a 5+ year shelf life which allows us to distribute internationally to developing countries.

In 2024, Hope RE Funding was established as a creative and innovative solution to address the capital financial challenges of expanding the Blessings of Hope infrastructure while staying true to our mission of stewardship and impact. By utilizing private investments, we could efficiently purchase and develop the facilities necessary to distribute surplus food to those in need. This approach ensures that Blessings of Hope could grow sustainably while maintaining its commitment to stewarding resources for God’s Kingdom.

Providing Hope

Ending world hunger is not just about providing food; it’s about giving hope. Hunger is often accompanied by feelings of despair, isolation, and hopelessness. When we meet physical needs, we also have the opportunity to address emotional and spiritual needs. Through partnerships with churches and community organizations, we can offer more than just meals—we can provide encouragement, community, and a sense of purpose.

Our vision is to not only fill stomachs but to literally change the way we address food insecurity, all while sharing the love of Jesus Christ.

●      What if we could privatize welfare by empowering the community to take care of the community?

●      What if we could implement Kingdom-based, strategic, real-life teaching and equipping programs as a part of the welfare system?

●      What if we could help people overcome dependency on government funding and rewrite the story on welfare?

●      What if we could mobilize the community to serve?

●      What if, through a Kingdom-driven strategy and a self-funded model, we could reduce the $1.2 trillion America currently spends on welfare—with an infrastructure investment of just $12–15 billion?

We believe we could serve the nation with 18-20 strategically placed, large food distribution centers (approximately one million square feet each) and a food selection center in every major city (30,000 to 40,000 square feet each) that would empower the nonprofit organizations of that region to restock their food pantries. Our proven, self-funded model in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, draws nonprofit organizations from hundreds of miles each direction.

We know this vision will require significant resources and collaboration. Governments, corporations, nonprofits, and individuals all have a role to play. At Blessings of Hope, we believe that no effort is too small. Every donation, volunteer hour, and partnership moves us closer to the goal of a world where no one goes hungry. Together, through faith and collaboration, we can turn the dream of ending world hunger into reality.

As I reflect on the journey since becoming CEO, I am amazed at how far Blessings of Hope has come. The challenges have been tremendous—from creative funding solutions, to finding enough space for our growth, to managing logistics on a massive scale—but the rewards have been even greater. Seeing lives changed, communities strengthened, and faith restored makes every obstacle worth it. Our mission continues to grow, and I firmly believe the best is yet to come as we follow God’s leading into the future.