Last year we distributed nearly 47 million pounds of food. But before millions of pounds of food are distributed into the hands of families in need, volunteers in our product recovery warehouse help us clean, inspect and pack food donated from community events and food drives.
To make this possible, we host volunteer shifts Monday through Saturday with morning, afternoon and evening shifts. With our volunteer team staff already managing more than 28,700 volunteers last year, we needed extra help this year to get even more food to our neighbors in need.
Starting September 2019, the Junior League of Austin Community Project Grant will help provide members to take on the responsibilities of Warehouse Volunteer Leaders on Monday evenings, and Saturday morning and afternoon shifts through May, 2020.
Twenty-five Junior League volunteers will help cover 312 Volunteer Leader shifts during the 39-week grant period. With each shift lasting four hours, a total of 1,248 hours of service will be completed during the project.
As Warehouse Volunteer Leaders, members will welcome and help our public volunteers check-in to their shift. They will learn the ins and outs of our product recovery practices so that they’re able to assist volunteers with any questions, train them on their tasks and equipment, assist product recovery staff with setup and breakdown and ensure that all volunteers are following correct food-safety protocols.
Once the warehouse shift is over, leaders will help volunteers with the giant check and take photos of groups, as well as communicate impact and gratitude to our volunteers.
While helping lead up to 100 volunteers every shift, Junior League members will gain new skills in food safety, community engagement, networking, public speaking, supervision and project management.
In addition to helping us lead our volunteers and learning new skills, Junior League members will be able to complete their required 50 hours of service helping feed families in need.
Volunteers are the heart of the Food Bank and we’re excited to work with Junior League members to help us make our public volunteer experience even better.
