So, I finally got around to doing something I’d been meaning to do for a while. I went down to the LA Regional Food Bank, the one over in City of Industry. It’s funny how you put things off, right? Life gets busy, or you tell yourself you’ll do it “next week.” But I had some time open up, project at work slowed down, and I figured, no more excuses.
Getting Started With It
Finding the place wasn’t too bad, actually. I’d looked it up online beforehand, got the address. Signing up to volunteer was pretty straightforward too. Did that online a few days before. You pick a shift, fill out some basic info, and that’s pretty much it. I chose a morning slot. Got there, found parking, which was a bit of a hunt, not gonna lie. Big place, lots of trucks coming and going.
Walked in, and there was a check-in area. Showed my confirmation, got a quick rundown of the rules, you know, safety stuff, where the restrooms are, the usual. They give you an apron and gloves. Everyone seemed pretty organized, which I appreciated. Nothing worse than showing up to volunteer and nobody knows what’s going on. That’s happened to me before at other places, total chaos. This was different, felt like they had their system down.
The Actual Work – What I Did
After the quick orientation, they took our group into this massive warehouse. Seriously, it was huge. Pallets of food stacked high. Forklifts zipping around – carefully, of course. Our job for the day, or at least my group’s job, was sorting and packing produce.
They had these big bins of, like, oranges, potatoes, onions, stuff like that. Our task was to go through them. We had to:
- Check for any bad ones – you know, moldy or squished. Toss those out.
- Put the good ones into smaller bags or boxes.
- Then those bags and boxes would go onto pallets to be shipped out.
It sounds simple, and it is, but it’s also pretty physical. You’re on your feet, bending, lifting a bit. My back was definitely talking to me by the end of it. We worked in a line, assembly-style. One person checks, another bags, another boxes. It moves pretty quick. I spent a lot of time with oranges. So. Many. Oranges. But it was kind of meditative, just focusing on the task. You chat a bit with the people next to you. Met some nice folks, all there for different reasons, just wanting to help out.
What Struck Me
The sheer scale of the operation, that’s what really hit me. You hear about food banks, but seeing all that food, knowing it’s going to people who need it… it’s something else. And the number of volunteers! There were quite a few of us there, all working away. It’s kind of impressive how it all comes together. Makes you think about how much need there is, but also how many people are willing to step up.
And honestly, it felt good. Yeah, I was tired. My hands smelled like onions for a bit, even with the gloves. But it felt productive, you know? Like I actually did something useful. It’s a change from staring at a computer screen all day, which is what I usually do. This was tangible. You see the boxes piling up, ready to go.
Wrapping Up
When our shift was over, we cleaned up our area, turned in our aprons. I was definitely ready for lunch. Walked out feeling a bit achy but also pretty satisfied. It’s a straightforward way to make a bit of a difference. I’m already thinking I’ll sign up for another shift sometime soon. If you’ve got a few hours to spare, it’s worth looking into. Simple work, but it matters.
