One of those things I do
Mar. 24th, 2009 07:24 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
seticatOne of those things I do that's kind of a combination of 'pay it forward' and 'pay it back' thing is I volunteer at a local food bank once a week [Tuesday for 3-4 hours]. It's something that makes me feel good when all is said and done and Heaven's knows I've been on the other end of a food bank from time to time.
It's an interesting bank in that you don't just come in, do your qualification thing, get a box of food and then leave, you actually 'shop'. By that I mean you walk through the rooms and, based on the number in your family, you can pick and choose what you get. It's restricted by what we have that day, of course, but it gives folks a chance to get familiar foods for themselves and their family. You can 'shop' once every 30 calendar days.
I've been doing this the last three months and it's busy and rewarding. I 'worked' as a 'shopper' at the beginning - that's the person who goes around with each client and helps them pick, reminds them of the set limits, etc. It's enjoyable, but really hectic and crowded. Hard on my personal issues. So now I help as a 'shopper' if things get slammed, but I pretty much spend my time as a stocker and boxer. I unload bulk boxes and put them on flats for each storage both in the back rooms and out of the shopper's shelves. I make sure there's stuff on the shelves [within in the limits of what is planned to go out on that specific day] and generally act as a go-pher.
I get to organize, futz and if things get too much, I can step back out of the hustle for a bit. It's the perfect spot for me.
In the weeks since I've started, we average 50-some families on my 'day'. I understand that the other open day, Saturday, is usually busier. But today, we served over 80+ families. You can feel the economy start to close in around here. Now I don't know if that's an anomaly or going to be the new norm. It may be because Feb was a short month [28 days]. Don't know.
What I *do* know is my neck, shoulders & back are really feeling my slinging boxes and flats of canned goods around for 3+ hours.
Motrin, here I come.
It's an interesting bank in that you don't just come in, do your qualification thing, get a box of food and then leave, you actually 'shop'. By that I mean you walk through the rooms and, based on the number in your family, you can pick and choose what you get. It's restricted by what we have that day, of course, but it gives folks a chance to get familiar foods for themselves and their family. You can 'shop' once every 30 calendar days.
I've been doing this the last three months and it's busy and rewarding. I 'worked' as a 'shopper' at the beginning - that's the person who goes around with each client and helps them pick, reminds them of the set limits, etc. It's enjoyable, but really hectic and crowded. Hard on my personal issues. So now I help as a 'shopper' if things get slammed, but I pretty much spend my time as a stocker and boxer. I unload bulk boxes and put them on flats for each storage both in the back rooms and out of the shopper's shelves. I make sure there's stuff on the shelves [within in the limits of what is planned to go out on that specific day] and generally act as a go-pher.
I get to organize, futz and if things get too much, I can step back out of the hustle for a bit. It's the perfect spot for me.
In the weeks since I've started, we average 50-some families on my 'day'. I understand that the other open day, Saturday, is usually busier. But today, we served over 80+ families. You can feel the economy start to close in around here. Now I don't know if that's an anomaly or going to be the new norm. It may be because Feb was a short month [28 days]. Don't know.
What I *do* know is my neck, shoulders & back are really feeling my slinging boxes and flats of canned goods around for 3+ hours.
Motrin, here I come.
