Woman Spends Hundreds Restocking Little Free Pantries in Her Neighborhood for BacktoSchool Season (Exclusive) Meredith WilshereAugust 30, 2025 at 7:00 PM McKenzie Mack McKenzie Mack, Free Little Pantry After seeing countless wasteful "haul" videos on TikTok, McKenzie Mack was inspired to shop for a ...
- - Woman Spends Hundreds Restocking Little Free Pantries in Her Neighborhood for Back-to-School Season (Exclusive)
Meredith WilshereAugust 30, 2025 at 7:00 PM
McKenzie Mack
McKenzie Mack, Free Little Pantry -
After seeing countless wasteful "haul" videos on TikTok, McKenzie Mack was inspired to shop for a good cause
Mack buys things that people in her community need and donates them to Little Free Pantries in her area
A video of her donating school supplies went viral, racking up over 660,000 views
McKenzie Mack was looking for a way to give back to her community when she learned about Little Free Pantries.
Looking for fun ways to make "haul" videos, without unnecessary waste, Mack decided to start contributing to the pantries — zero-barrier donation spots where community members can leave food, essential items, books and more to support their neighbors.
"Viral restocking content usually glorifies overconsumption, so I wanted to find a way to give people that same content for a good cause instead," Mack shares with PEOPLE exclusively. "I researched nonprofits and donation opportunities in my area, and that's how I stumbled upon the Little Free Pantries!"
McKenzie Mack
School supplies in Free Little Pantry
Mack, 28, frequently films herself going to various stores and finding items that can help the people who need it most, often taking suggestions from her comments section on fun themes — such as her most recent back-to-school haul.
Mack posted her first pantry restock video in May and the series has "gone viral ever since." Mack shares that each restock costs anywhere from $150 to $300, depending on the size of the pantry and what she is getting. Her recent restock of school supplies cost $255.
"I always include a range of food, fun, and essential items. Most of the restocks are gone within one to two days. It's fun to go back and see what goes the quickest," Mack says.
Inspired by the back-to-school season, Mack looked up school supply lists from her local elementary school, purchasing composition notebooks, Band-Aids, scissors, colored pencils, Post-it notes, and other supplies like headphones and water bottles. Her video went viral, amassing over 660,000 views.
McKenzie Mack
McKenzie Mack, Free Little Pantry
"I was inspired to share donations on social media to hopefully give others that social push," Mack tells PEOPLE.
She hopes that sharing her videos online will inspire others to do something similar in their communities — and it has worked.
"I've been surprised at the amount of people who tell me I inspired them to donate to their local pantries! I have also seen more and more videos of other influencers sharing donations, which has been so cool," she shares. "It's that social push."
For those looking to get more involved in their area, Mack notes that every community's needs are different and encourages people to look for areas where people need help the most. She also emphasizes the importance of feeling connected to the work.
"Everyone has different passions, and I encourage people to find theirs! It doesn't have to start and end with Little Free Pantry donations," she says. "I have volunteered at food banks, canvassed for human rights, even cooked meals for single mothers."
"The more our community thrives, the more we thrive!" she adds.
on People
Source: "AOL Lifestyle"
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