Tag: Programs

Hunger Doesn’t Take a Break – Please Volunteer

March 13, 2020

Here at the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank, we serve some of the most vulnerable people in our community; children, seniors, homebound adults with disabilities, and families struggling to make ends meet. Now, more than ever, it’s critical to get food out to the community. Schools are closing, people are homebound, and many have their work hours cut in the wake of COVID–19.  

At this time, the Food Bank is still fully operational. As indicated in the new public health order that requires residents to stay home except for essential needs, food banks are an essential service similar to a grocery store, and we must continue to work to distribute food out in the community.

The backbone of our operation

We can’t provide food without you. Our volunteers help us pack and distribute over 1 million pounds of food per month! It’s understandable that there are concerns about volunteering at this point. And individuals should consider their own health and well-being before deciding whether or not to volunteer. We are closely monitoring the situation and we are in close contact with the SF Department of Public Health and are following their recommendations. We are reevaluating our operations daily. 

To protect the health of our volunteers, and staff, we have made changes to our warehouse volunteer program, for example, reducing the number of volunteers at each shift and cutting non-essential projects. Right now, we are only packing senior boxes and grocery bags for delivery to homebound neighbors. We have also stepped up our cleaning and are wiping down all equipment after every shift, and asking all volunteers to keep a reasonable distance from one another while at the warehouse and when possible moving the projects outside. We also have plenty of hand sanitizer and gloves are mandatory for volunteers.

And of course, if any volunteer is feeling unwell, we ask them to stay home.

More need out in the community

Our volunteer needs are ever-changing as we adapt and respond to the challenges COVID-19 presents and determine how to best serve our community. If you are interested in learning about future opportunities in the warehouse and in the community as they arise in response to COVID-19, please, go to our volunteer page to sign up.

Questions? Read our FAQ

Thank you for your support!

PS. If you want to see what it is like to volunteer at our warehouse, press play.

Healthy Children | Monday is Pantry Day

July 28, 2017

Later this month, it’s back to school for thousands of children all over the Bay Area.  A great many will likely groan when they hear the “Brapp! Brapp! Brapp!” of the alarm clock, but 9-year-old Za’niya is quite the opposite.  The incoming fourth grader at John Muir Elementary School in San Francisco actually looks forward to getting up early – especially on Mondays.  You see, Monday is pantry day at her school.  It’s when Za’Niya rises at 6am and helps her Great Aunt Jeanette, and her two cousins, Jayden and Jamire, set up the Healthy Children Pantry in the school’s cafeteria. Serving about 50 families every week, John Muir is one of 46 schools in San Francisco and Marin that partner with the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank to host pantries for students and families throughout the school year.

“Six o’clock is kinda early, but it’s okay because I know we’re helping out a lot of people who don’t have enough food at home to eat,” says Za’Niya, as she maneuvers a box of produce on a table in the school’s multi-purpose room.

Za’Niya is partial to the apples that find their way to the pantry: “They’re sweet and I really like it.  I put them in my backpack or my jacket pocket and eat it at recess.”

Jeanette has volunteered as the pantry coordinator for a few years, motivated by the need she sees among the families who attend John Muir. Almost 90 percent of the students are eligible for the free and reduced-price lunch program.

Now that she’s retired, Jeanette finds it increasingly difficult to stretch her budget to cover living expenses. “It used to be that I would pass on taking food from the pantry. I would leave it for other families because I felt like they needed it more,” she says. “But now, I’m finding that my own Social Security checks aren’t covering all the bills. My family is also struggling, so I take a box of food from the pantry too – some for me, but mostly to make sure Za’Niya and her cousins have good food to eat at home.”

For busy families, accessing fresh, healthy food right on campus, just before the bell rings on Monday mornings, is a great help.

Ryan Lawler, Kindergarten teacher says, “It’s hard for a lot of our families; some work two or three jobs. They’re trying to get their kids ready in the morning, to get them on the bus, to get them here to school on time. So with the pantry right here at school, our parents have a convenient, reliable source of food to sustain their families all week long.”

Last year, about 4,000 families were served by Healthy Children Pantries like the one at John Muir Elementary. These farmers’ market-style pantries provide low-income parents with fresh fruits and vegetables, lean protein such as chicken or eggs, and pantry staples like rice and beans.

Please give today to help parents provide their children with the food they need to stay healthy and thrive.