Needs From: University of the Pacific Volunteer Center

The Kitchen Assistant will help St Mary's staff with washing and cutting meats and vegetables. They will help with wiping down all hard surfaces and sweeping and mopping the floors. Washing dishes and putting them away. Serving our guests on the line, putting away the leftovers and prepping meals for the next day. 

Every 2nd Saturday of the month, Mosswood Park Church of God partners with the Bread of Life organization to distribute free food to our local community members. On average, we serve up to 60+ families per month including our volunteers. Because we are looking to grow our reach into the greater community as well as to begin assisting students on local colleges campuses experiencing food insecurity, we are in desperate need of volunteers.

The volunteers are welcome to assist us the entire day (9am to 1 pm) or they can work in shifts. From 9am to 10:30 am is setup which consists of unloading the food truck once it arrives, sorting the food and organizing the paperwork. From 10:30 am to 12:30 pm is the actual food distribution to the community or until all of the food has been disbursed, whichever comes first. From 12:30-1 pm is cleanup. If there is any food leftover, we take it into the church and store it either in the refrigerator or on the tables for church members to pickup on Sunday mornings after the worship service. Cleanup also consists of removing tables and chairs used outside during the distribution and placing them back into the church fellowship hall. Lastly, any cardboard boxes which contained the food that is remaining will be broken down and placed into the recycle bin or the garbage dumpster.

In addition, there is also an opportunity if volunteers are interested in doing some administrative work. On Fridays, we have a need for someone to assist with data entry into the Bread of Life database along with the printing of forms for community members to fill out on the day of the food distribution.

On behalf of the staff here, we would like to thank you for offering to give your time to the Food Bank. It is our mission to provide nutrition to those in need throughout San Joaquin County. None of that would be possible without our community partners who volunteer here every day.

As a volunteer here, you can expect to assist with preparing and distributing food boxes/bags that will be given out to clients in need. This could look like sorting, loading cars, and/or packing boxes with food. You will be working alongside other volunteers and staff. Here is some helpful information to know prior to your first time volunteering here:

Our hours of operation are Monday thru Friday from 7:30am-2pm

We are looking to fill some spots in the evening on weekdays and weekends in the kitchen. Volunteers would be helping to serve dinner and prepping meals for the next day and putting all the left over foods away and cleaning the kitchen before the kitchen is closed for the day. Dinner is served from 4:30 until 5:30 and clean up until 6 pm. We greatly appreciate all the help from our volunteers. 

The Dining Room Assistant helps facilitate serving our Guests their meals and the clean up afterwards. Senior Citizens, single mothers with children and mobility impaired guests are brought into the dining room first to sit. Once they are ready to start, they are served and the remaining guests are brought in and lined up to get their trays to sit and eat their meals. Once they are done eating the staff and volunteers take up to the window for cleaning and the staff will wipe down the tables and clean the floors. 

They also help the kitchen staff in between meals with whatever tasks may need to get done. Some examples are rolling forks and spoons into napkins for easier serving, cleaning the windows, wiping down chairs, filling up the drink carts. 

We hold a food pantry every Wednesday from 2-3p for those who need a little help with food. Volunteers are needed from 1pm to 3:30p to help set up, help distribute in stations and clean up. 

Set up: Sort and organize food items for distribution in the kitchen and set it up in stations so everyone that walks through the doors can shop and take what they need.

Distribution station: Typically you are assigned a station and you let people know what items and quantity they can take and replenish every time it gets low.

Clean up: Once the last person is gone, we clean out the stations, put everything back into the assign place in the kitchen and clean the table (station).