
184. An Alley, A Cause, and Really Good Pizza ft. John Carruthers
From I am Consciously Curious by Victor Chan
April 29, 2026 · 2h 41m
About this episode
John Carruthers shares how a pizza pop-up in an alley turned into a charitable initiative during the pandemic.
John Carruthers didn't set out to raise $100,000 for Chicago nonprofits. He just wanted to do something that felt useful when the world stopped making sense. When the pandemic hit, John — a writer and lifelong pizza obsessive — felt the helplessness that most of us did. What started as a weekly family ritual became something stranger and more beautiful — a secret alley pop-up, where strangers donate to John’s monthly charity of choice, show up to an alley, and eat great pizza. That's Crust Fu...
People in this episode
Host: Victor Chan
Guest: John Carruthers
Topics covered
- charity
- pizza
- community
- pandemic
- nonprofits
Keywords
- charity
- pizza
- Chicago
- nonprofits
- pandemic
- community
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Crust Fu
Places: Chicago
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