Make a Difference in Your Community
1. More Neighbors Need Your Help
The prolonged health and economic crisis makes healthy groceries more difficult to afford, even for the employed. Contrary to the belief that food banks exclusively feed the homeless, the largest demographic FIND Food Bank serves is working adults.
About 45% of FIND’s food assistance programs benefit adults who often work but still cannot afford all of the necessities to live and feed their families. Inflation and the rising cost of living in California makes affording necessities like gas, rent, medicine, energy, and other bills unattainable for too many.
If you too are worried about the long-term impact of the economic recession, you can start by taking action to feed those in need. When communities have access to healthy food their physical health and finances stabilize producing benefits like lower healthcare costs, educational opportunity for children, and boosts in the local economy.
2. Homebound Clients Rely on FIND’s Volunteer Delivery Drivers
Karl Scott is one of FIND’s 150 homebound delivery recipients. At 83-years-old with several health conditions, Karl can’t go grocery shopping, but still manages to gather with his Veteran friends for the holidays. This last Thanksgiving, Karl secured a turkey, potatoes, and vegetables with a last-minute call to FIND Food Bank. Karl has been a part of FIND Food Bank family since the beginning when he helped recruit the National Guard from Twenty Nine Palms to volunteer. Now he’s grateful to have neighbors that return the favor to him. Thanks to the homebound deliver
“It is a combination of companionship. You know, we’re all old. We have a lot of stories to tell. Lewis is a writer. She’s published a lot of poetry. And she writes for years for the post magazine. Then this lady over here is a retired director of community service for the college. These two guys are both retired lawyers. Mike and Mary were professional fishermen, up on the coast, and I could go all the way around the park. Marjan Rene, they were head honchos at Desert hospital. But these are years ago. I have had a wonderful life.”
3. See How Each Action Adds Up
The A Team – Fran, Kerry, Janet, Christine, and Paul volunteer every week in FIND’s warehouse to pack fresh produce for their community. Paul drives from Desert Hot Springs twice a week, and Fran doubles her volunteer time helping out weekly as an office assistant.
They are motivated by the need to do something good, not just for themselves but for the community. Retired but still working hard to make the world a better place, our volunteer regulars easily become the stars of the show.
Check out all the full list of Volunteer Heroes from 2021.
4. “That’s the Way You Bring People Together, Through Service”
There is no shortage of colorful characters and warm hearts when you volunteer in FIND’s warehouse or at our Mobile Market Distributions. Many find refuge in volunteer work discovering like-minded individuals who come together because they truly care for the well-being of their neighbors. Take it from Martha McCarthy who found purpose in service after her time incarcerated.
Martha McCarthy travelled from Cal Poly Pomona to gather hands-on experience to support her Master’s in Nonprofit Management. “Service is important for our country. Period. There is people that do many things when it comes to service like volunteering or the army. You can serve your community and your country in so many ways. That’s the best way to come together.” She motioned to her fellow students in her class, and beamed with pride at having met them serving a noble cause. Martha’s passion to create a better world starts in her own backyard. She plans to open a nonprofit resource center to connect those reentering society to tools and counselors that will expedite the process to driver’s license, jobs, and ultimately financial and emotional stability. She finds FIND Food Bank’s work to be amazing because she sees how rampant fast food chains and a lack of access to nutrition affects the well-being and economic outcomes of her own community. Martha knows the importance of food banks because she understands how equitable access to healthy food produces better outcomes for education, public health, and economic mobility.
