Austin Baron has been on a mission to fight hunger since elementary school, and he’s not slowing down.
Now a sophomore studying business analytics at the University of Notre Dame, Baron is the founder of Knot Perfect, a nonprofit organization that sells handmade dog toys to raise money for meal-packing events aimed at addressing food insecurity around the world.
“I went to meal packing events in my hometown, and I learned that a billion people go to bed hungry each night,” Baron said. “That really motivated me to want to do something to help them.”
What began as a small-scale fundraising effort with just 100 dog toys has grown over the past decade. Baron has helped raise enough to fund more than 100,000 meals, and his next goal is to reach one million.
He’s also found ways to expand his reach. A longtime fan of NBC’s American Ninja Warrior, Baron has used his appearance on the show to raise awareness for his cause.
“A friend suggested I apply for American Ninja Warrior,” he said. “I realized that going on would be a way that I could use my platform and use it to advocate for an end to world hunger.”
Baron says one of his favorite aspects of the work is how it brings people together, especially young people.
“What I also love about the meal packing events is that youth as young as 5 can come to the events and can pack meals,” he said. “I wanna give youth the same experience so that our community can become a place where people are dedicated to serving others.”
This year marks the 10th anniversary of Baron’s efforts, and he’s hoping to use the momentum to help pack an additional 125,000 meals by year’s end.
“It would mean a lot because the meal packing events taught me so much, and a million is such a big milestone number,” Baron said. “I really wanna keep packing meals to feed the hungry.”
More information about his nonprofit is available at knotperfect.org.
