That’s a wrap! We’re so thankful for everyone who spent time with us during our 2024 Volunteer Appreciation Week!
It was a pleasure to welcome our Very Important Volunteers, or VIVs, who have dedicated 50+ hours in 2023 alone during a special repack shift this week at our Galloway warehouse. Because they are so committed to Philabundance’s mission, they did spend time packing 1,600 boxes for our seniors in need and created nearly 2,000 BackPack kits for children facing food insecurity.
But, it wasn’t all work! Our volunteers enjoyed a special dinner prepared by our talented Philabundance Community Kitchen chefs, danced to great tunes, snapped fun pics at our photo booth wall, and received some pretty cool Philabundance swag!
This wonderful week has not only been a time to say, “Thank You,” but it’s been an opportunity to recognize and honor the profound impact our volunteers have on helping us to meet the challenge of our mission. It certainly doesn’t go unnoticed that they arrive with big smiles and a steadfast willingness to work hard to help us ensure that families don’t go hungry. We know that our operation runs on volunteers, and without them, we couldn’t carry out our vital work.
A quick look back at 2023 – over 3,000 volunteers donated more than 25,000 hours to sort food drive donations, pack senior meal boxes, assemble BackPack meal-gap kits for children, prepare ready-to-eat meals at our Philabundance Community Kitchen, and so much more! Thanks to them, we saved more than a million dollars in labor costs, allowing us to purchase more healthy food to distribute to our neighbors in need.
In addition, we rely on our Ambassadors, volunteers who are trained by our staff to represent Philabundance at a variety of events and donation presentations, helping us to convey our gratitude to donors and supporters and to educate people about our work.
Also, because our service area is so vast, we look to our 350+ Community Partners to help us distribute healthy food to their respective neighbors in need. Many, if not most, recruit their own volunteers to work at the pantry, assist during food distribution days, and assist with pick up and deliveries.
You can get involved too! Not only can you volunteer your time at our warehouses and at the Philabundance Community Kitchen, hosting a food drive is an easy and fun way to give back. Food drives, both traditional events and virtual campaigns, generate more than one million pounds annually for our neighbors in need. Learn how to get started today!
If your schedule doesn’t allow for in-person shifts or food drive coordination, it’s simple to donate funds right here on our website. One dollar can provide up to two meals, so your financial contributions, whatever amount you can give, will help us fight hunger now and end hunger for good. Please pledge your support today! Thank you for all you do!
