Volunteers are essential to the successful operation of all programs at Inter-Faith Food Shuttle. In Fiscal Year 2021 alone, a tremendous 20,130 service hours were engaged by volunteers across the various programs the Food Shuttle conducts to address hunger relief in central North Carolina. In short, we love our volunteers! April is Volunteer Appreciation Month, and we take appreciating our volunteers pretty seriously.
This year’s volunteer appreciation events include a luncheon for the Food Shuttle Farm’s core volunteers, and an “On the Menu” event at the Farm that will explore various volunteer opportunities. Snazzy new Food Shuttle Volunteer hats are being presented to our recurring volunteers, and assorted goodies are provided at all volunteer shifts. Yum!
Farm Core Volunteers luncheon
The volunteers at the Food Shuttle are as diverse as the programs they enable. The Andrews family—Didi and sons Reid and Tucker—lend their hands at Camden Street Learning Garden and with Grocery Bags for Seniors each month. When asked why she includes volunteering in her homeschool curriculum, Didi offers that it teaches valuable lessons in giving back to the community. And despite the fact that the boys sometimes have to get up pretty early to get to their shifts, “they really enjoy it!”
The Andrews family
The members of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Cary like to share their spirit of generosity far and wide. Not only do church members volunteer each month to pack and deliver Grocery Bags for Seniors, but another team steps up at the Durham warehouse to pack family food boxes. Why do they do it? “Because that’s what we’re called to do—to serve others.”
Christ the King team members
Angela Moore attended an “On the Menu” event back in February and was motivated to sign on as a volunteer right away. Since then, she has answered phone calls at our front desk, packed and delivered Grocery Bags for Seniors, helped build raised garden beds with Gardens for Everyone, planted and harvested crops at both of our community gardens, and used her passion for cooking to help with cooking demonstrations at Durham Senior Center and Corral Riding Academy. “Grocery Bags for Seniors is probably my favorite, especially when a senior opens the door smiling,” Angela said. “Their smile just warms my heart.”
Angela Moore
At the Food Shuttle Farm, a core team of volunteers helps to ensure that everything keeps running smoothly. The Farm has a full-time staff of five, but with 14 acres to manage and an annual output of 54,000+ pounds of produce, the Farm’s core volunteers have proven to be invaluable. Speaking with volunteers Carol, Lisa, Kathy, Catherine, Shirley, and Tina, one gets a sense of the dedication these women bring to this endeavor. They all voice a firm commitment to the mission of the Food Shuttle and the sheer joy they all derive from simply being outdoors at the Farm. Shirley tells of how she came to volunteer as a result of stopping by one day to see her brother Frank—another long-time volunteer—and how she basically never left. Tina shares that her reason for supporting the Food Shuttle’s hunger relief efforts harken back to her father’s experiences with hunger in his youth.
Carol
Lisa
Kathy
Catherine
Shirley
Tina
Such wonderful volunteers, always a need for more, and we appreciate each and every one. If you’d like to lend a hand with one or more Food Shuttle programs and help to create a hunger free community here in central North Carolina, please join us. A variety of opportunities await! Sign up today at www.FoodShuttle.org/Volunteer.