Second Harvest employees volunteer at local pantry

As a part of Hunger Action Month, Second Harvest employees decided to volunteer a few hours on Tuesday at a local food pantry.  The Baptist Center at Western Heights is one of our busiest pantries.  Every Tuesday and Thursday they open their doors to hundreds of families in need.  The Baptist Center has taken a new approach to the food pantry, they allow clients a "supermarket" experience when picking up food.  Instead of being handed a box of already sorted and chosen food items, families are allowed to pick from a selection of foods.  For instance, individuals are given the option between sliced white bread, wheat rolls or pita pockets, boxes of macaroni and cheese, plain noodles or rice, strawberries or grapes.  As families walk through the pantry, they can pick and choose depending on what they want and what their families will eat. 

Each week Second Harvest is visited by hundreds of pantries.  They come to the warehouse to pick up food that they turn around and distribute to individuals in need.  Although we often have the opportunity to visit with pantry workers and volunteers, we rarely have the chance to be there when the food goes out to families.  Being there on the front line of the pantry open hours gave us an opportunity to see how our work at the warehouse actually affects those who receive our food.  On Tuesday the Baptist Center served approximately 400 families, all within 3 hours.  We met young and old, of all backgrounds, each there for various reasons.  We greeted children and babies, mothers and sisters, fathers and grandfathers. 

The Baptist Center is run by a group of organized, caring, hardworking individuals.  People who give up their time to make others' lives better.  Open now for over 15 years, the Baptist Center has their schedule and routine down to an art.  Like many pantries in our area, the Baptist Center relies on volunteers to keep their operation running smoothly.  The employees at Second Harvest enjoyed the opportunity to be some of the many volunteers that helped Tuesday's pantry go so well.  It was a great experience for us to see our agency in action and witness the inter workings of the pantry.  It was also a great reminder to each of us that once the food leaves our warehouse, it goes almost directly into the mouths of our neighbors in need. 

Second Harvest plans to send employees out to pantries to volunteer on a regular basis.  If you would be interested in volunteers at our warehouse, at a local pantry, or with the Second Harvest employees, please contact John Bell at john@secondharvestknox.org .