Meet Susie Hovey, Volunteer Coordinator
We sat down with Susie Hovey, Volunteer Coordinator, to learn more about volunteering at the Community Food Connection.
Can you describe a typical day for a volunteer at Community Food Connection?
At the Community Food Connection, there are three primary ways you can help. One is to be a driver where you go to the local grocery stores and bring their surplus food back to our facility. We have refrigerators and freezers and we store all of that food ready for distribution. The other way is you can work at our facility in the mornings where we receive food from the stores and then pack food to be given to our clients. In the afternoons on Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays we have a drive-through food distribution for our clients and so you would be adding extra food to pre-packed boxes or you would be putting boxes into our clients' cars.
What motivated you to become involved with Community Food Connection, and how has the experience impacted you personally?
The Food Connection was started by Trinity Church 12 years ago and is now an independent nonprofit. We are not a faith based nonprofit but we have people of all faiths. We welcome anyone and everyone to come and serve with us. I have a heart of compassion because of my faith and I want to serve my community and use the skills that I have. It's a perfect match for where I am in life, where I live, and my heart to serve. It has impacted me personally to be able to see how much we can accomplish with people working together. We are a completely volunteer-run organization and it still amazes me to see all the skills, the time, and the talents that people bring to this Community Food Connection.
What are some of the biggest challenges that Community Food Connection faces today?
At the Community Food Connection, our current challenges are three facets. We have people, we have food, and we have facilities. People, we continue to have a high demand for people needing food. Between 2022 and 2023, we had a 70% increase in the number of households that we serve. This means we're stretching our food farther. For food, we continue to need to buy additional food so that we are able to give people enough food when they come by each week. Our facility needs maintenance to keep it running smoothly and efficiently. Our biggest assets are the food, the people and the facility. Any one of those things by itself is absolutely worthless. But when you have a good facility with excellent volunteers and plenty of food, it's amazing what you can do.
What skills and qualities do you look for in a volunteer, and are there any specific roles you are looking to fill currently?
We can use volunteers of all skills and abilities currently. We need drivers, and we need people to work at our facility. My favorite volunteers are the people who come in the door and say, what do you need? How can I help? Our volunteers need to be able to work three to four hours physically because we are on our feet, packing food, handing out food or picking up food at the stores. So people who are eager, who have a teachable spirit, I love to see them walk in the door.
Can you share a particularly memorable moment or success story from your time with the Community Food Connection?
The most memorable things are when I get to learn the stories. Every car that comes through here has a story. We've had a single mother putting herself through college who just had a major car expense and she needed food. We have a group of senior citizens that come through and get food and take it back to their senior community to share with other people there. We have people facing medical debt. We have people who have just lost their job. We have people who are working and doing well but they are just on the verge of not doing well. So any food that we can supply then gives them more money for rent, for health insurance, school supplies for their children. So hearing the stories of the people we help - those are the things that stick with me.
For someone considering volunteering, how should they take the first step?
You can contact me! We always need volunteers. Currently we have 180 volunteers from age 16 up to age 94, so we have a place for everyone. The best thing you can do if you're interested is to arrange to come here to our facility and have an orientation. You can see what we do, and then try working a shift. You won't know until you try it. When you come to work at the Food Connection, you'll be met by a team leader who will greet you and train you for that day. What we do is not rocket science, so we need eager hearts and helping hands. There's a place for everybody.
To learn more, please contact Susie - we look forward to meeting you!
Susie Hovey, Volunteer Coordinator
cfcvolunteerteam@gmail.com
