Core Volunteer Opportunities for National Volunteer Week and Beyond

Volunteering in your community comes with a lot of benefits. It gives you the chance to give back to others, and equally important, it can also be a rewarding social experience where you meet new people and stay active. Here at Feeding San Diego, we have volunteer opportunities available nearly every day of the week. There’s a wide variety of needs. In general, there is an opportunity for everyone, whether you want to interact with the public or pack food independently. By the time you finish, you’ll feel great!

Here are some of your options for volunteer opportunities at Feeding San Diego:

Food Sorting Volunteer

This two-hour, hands-on volunteer shift might include gleaning fresh produce, packing boxes of food, or sorting through donated food. These core shifts take place at our distribution center in Sorrento Valley. You never know what you’ll be doing. Gleaning plums? Building boxes? Packing boxes with pantry staples? Check, check, and check. Whatever the day’s task, you’ll leave knowing you made a difference for San Diegans facing hunger.

A group of volunteers packs boxes during a volunteer shift.

This shift is highly social and energetic, with a great soundtrack to match! You’ll work in a group ranging from about ten people to up to 50. Kids age six and older are welcome with an adult. Check out our online calendar to find the next opportunity and sign up. Pro tip: Saturdays fill up fast, so you’ll need to sign up way in advance for weekend shifts.

Food Rescue Driver

Food rescue drivers are integral to our food rescue operations. You’ll pick up food from grocery stores and unique food donors and deliver it to our various agency partners throughout San Diego County. This unique volunteer opportunity allows you to see food donations in real time. You’ll also provide the critical service of getting that food to the organizations that distribute it to people experiencing food insecurity. Food rescue drivers must be 18 years or older. They use their own vehicle for food rescue pickups; however, we can train drivers to use refrigerated vans provided by Feeding San Diego if needed and approved by the transportation team. Volunteers can commit to a recurring pickup for at least six months or support sporadic pickups as needed, which is more flexible for volunteers who can’t make a weekly commitment. Learn more about this opportunity on our website.

Feeding San Diego Marketplace Volunteer

At our headquarters in Sorrento Valley, we have the Feeding San Diego Marketplace. Community members needing food assistance can shop for fresh groceries once a month. The Marketplace is almost entirely run by volunteers. Tasks include checking in neighbors when they arrive, gleaning rescued food that comes in, stocking the shelves as inventory runs low, cleaning, and interacting with neighbors. This role is an excellent opportunity to interact with people in the community who utilize hunger-relief programs and create a dignified, welcoming environment for them. Marketplace volunteers must be 18 or older. As of April 2024, the Marketplace is open four days a week: Tuesday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. You can find open shifts on our online calendar.

A volunteer restocks the shelves of the Feeding San Diego Marketplace.

Produce or Mobile Pantry Volunteer

The Produce and Mobile Pantry Programs are entirely run by volunteers. Both are pop-up food distributions that happen at various locations throughout the county. The Mobile Pantry Program is a longstanding program that supports rural communities in East County who don’t have consistent access to fresh food. Volunteers help set up the distribution and support its success from beginning to end.

Volunteers at a produce pantry hand out food to the community.

You will glean produce to make sure it’s fresh and ready to distribute, pack bags of produce or dry goods, and distribute products directly to community members. An adult must accompany volunteers ages 14-17. These shifts are active, outdoors, and highly social as volunteers work as a team. Additionally, many sites welcome Spanish-speaking neighbors, so bilingual volunteers are needed. Locations vary from Ramona to Oceanside. You can check the online calendar to find a shift that suits your schedule. 

Order Fulfillment Volunteer

This volunteer role ensures that product and inventory is ready to be delivered to families facing hunger throughout San Diego County. This volunteer opportunity is active but not as social as our food sorting shifts. Order fulfillment volunteers work in a warehouse environment and help pull orders, build and stage orders on pallets for delivery, and work directly with Feeding San Diego staff. This is our most active volunteer shift and requires someone who likes physical tasks. Order fulfillment volunteers must be able to lift a minimum of 50 pounds. If this sounds like your type of volunteer shift, you can fill out an application.

An order-fulfillment volunteer stacks donated food on a pallet.

Volunteer Opportunities for All!

Feeding San Diego volunteers make our mission possible. Without them, we could not distribute over 35 million meals to the community every year. These meals directly support our neighbors experiencing food insecurity. By donating your time, you are contributing to our vision of a hunger-free and healthy San Diego. For those who would prefer to donate funds, you can donate here.