Utah Food Bank

Sorting

One of the things that I did the most while I was there was sorting food that could then be used to give to people or prepare meals that could then be handed out. To sort, they had several different categories that the food could fit into, such as vegetables, fruit, or canned meals. For each category, you would fill up boxes with the correct items and then move the full box to a matching pallet.  It was interesting to be able to see all of the different labels that were put cans and such. An example would be of cans of SPAM. They would often have recipes on the box of what you could do with the product. 

For my service project, I decided to volunteer at the Utah Food Bank. The Food Bank, partnered with Feeding America, has become one of the major organizations within the state of Utah that distributes food to those in need.  Today, the Utah Food Bank receives its resources from several place and are as follows: 7% from food drives, 31% from the grocery rescue program, 38% from local grocery stores, 4% from national commercial, 19% from government commodities, and 1% of the food is purchased. This food is then distributed in a variety of ways such as the mobile pantry, kids cafe, and emergency food pantries. 

 Phone Calls

As I mentioned previously, food drives are one of the ways that the food bank receives some of its food items. One of the most notable of these is the Scouting For Food Drive that happens in late March of each year. In order to prepare for this drive, the food bank has volunteers that call out to the scoutmasters of each  troop to remind them of the upcoming drive. This allows for the leaders to prepare and promote the drive to the surrounding community. I was able to help make these reminder phone calls. I found this to be more difficult because it involved speaking to people that I didn't know very and caused me to get out of my comfort zone. 

Food Deliveries 

I also had the opportunity to make food deliveries to those who are unable to make to the pantry and collect the food they need. I found this to be a unique and humbling experience because you could see some of the conditions that some people live in. It makes you feel grateful for the things that have been given to you. It was also enjoyable because the people were so grateful that you were willing to help them through some of their struggles they are facing.