Latter-day Saints Volunteers to the Rescue

Jan12

From the meals that are made fresh in our kitchen each day to the food sorting and packaging that happens in our product recovery warehouse, volunteers ensure food leaves the Food Bank and makes its way to a family’s dinner table. The Food Bank serves nearly 46,000 individuals each week. Without the help from our volunteers it would be impossible to get food out the doors.

We rely on volunteers to fight hunger. When there are last-minute cancellations, it can be challenging to ensure food gets distributed on time, especially during the holidays when need is the highest.

Right before Christmas, we had a group of 80 volunteers cancel on the morning of their volunteer shift, making it difficult to stay on track and ensure that families received help in time for the holidays.

Our staff quickly got in contact with the Oak Hill Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) and they came to the rescue!

Eighty-four LDS volunteers answered our call for help. From children to adults, they filled our warehouse and were excited to get to work. Thanks to the volunteers, we were able to get back on track in less than 24 hours.

One of the volunteers was Patrick Newman, the Executive Director for the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. After touring our gardens, he agreed to donate seed product for the gardens.

The LDS volunteers are familiar faces at the Food Bank. We’re excited to work with them even more in the future. Patrick Newman and Cyndi Harrison, the LDS Oak Hills Stake Relief Society President, will help us recruit volunteers for our new Garden Volunteer Leader program launching later this year.

We can’t thank the LDS volunteers enough for coming to our rescue on such short notice. They exemplify the spirit of giving. Thank you!