Lee Fisher
June 24th, 2015, 6-8pm (3rd visit)
Second Harvest Food Bank
For my PACT project, I chose to work with Second Harvest Food Bank. I have worked with this organization before, so I knew exactly what to expect. SHFB serves food to people throughout the Bay Area on a weekly basis. I specifically helped with food sorting.
So far, I have visited the organization three times. Each time I have visited over the course of the past three months, I have worked two hour shifts in the warehouse sorting food. Last Wednesday (June 24th, 2015), I visited SHFB's San Mateo warehouse for the third time and sorted more food.
However, what I personally did at SHFB is not what really matters. What matters is the thousands of people who are fed every day because of volunteers like me. What matters is the children and seniors who did not starve this week. What matters is the parents who are able to feed their families nutritious meals every day instead of McDonald's McNuggets.
Without the 50+ volunteers working each shift, the bread and rolls would not have been packed, the expiration dates would not have been checked, and food would not have been packed into boxes and delivered. Without the volunteers, SHFB would not be able to do what it does. It relies heavily on the help of the wonderful people who volunteer there every week, and for three weeks, I was one of those volunteers.
I definitely discovered a lot about myself, my family, and my community through working with SHFB I am now much more aware about the struggles of people around me, especially those who rely on Second Harvest so heavily that they would go hungry without it. This was a huge wake-up call for me, because I haven't really been exposed to that kind of thing before. I am glad I chose SHFB to work with for my PACT.
