Volunteers are at the root of everything the Food Bank for Larimer County achieves in fighting hunger.
Every time we’re able to hand a nutritious meal to a child; every time we can deliver a box of groceries to a homebound senior; every time we fill a family’s cart at our No Cost Market — that nourishment, relief and hope can be traced back to the actions of a volunteer.
This month as we mark Volunteer Appreciation Month, I wanted to share my deepest gratitude for the volunteers who show up to make fighting hunger in our Larimer County community possible.
In the last year, more than 8,300 volunteers contributed 71,910 hours to the Food Bank for Larimer County. That’s an astounding amount of dedication. It is through this hard work that we have the ability to provide hunger relief to more than 50,000 people in Larimer County facing food insecurity. With a staff of about 50 people at the Food Bank, having this kind of outreach, with only employee power, would simply not be possible.
Day to day, our volunteers show up to work both behind the scenes and directly with our community — from arriving at the crack of dawn to prepare made-from-scratch meals for seniors and kids to repackaging and distributing food through our programs. In the last year alone, the Food Bank distributed enough food for more than 10 million meals. A feat that wouldn’t be possible without volunteers.
With food insecurity being a highly stigmatized issue, it can’t be underscored enough how crucial volunteers are to helping our community feel welcome, respected and empowered to use our hunger-relief programs. Volunteers are key to giving our community a dignified experience. Their friendly demeanor, willingness to help and genuine compassion for the people we serve make all the difference, especially when someone is experiencing a challenging time.
This impact is highlighted every time we talk to those we serve about our hunger-relief programs. Always, we hear immense gratitude for the volunteers that make our work possible.
Further, during times of crisis, our volunteer force is crucial to our ability to adapt and continue to nourish our community. When the government shut down late last year, and SNAP benefits were delayed, we saw the number of new household signups for services at our No Cost Markets more than triple in October. It is thanks to the support of volunteers that we were able to adapt and respond during that time of crisis.
With our community’s seniors, children and families continuing to need food security resources every day, it’s a necessity for our community to work alongside us. If you’ve volunteered, you’ve helped answer this call. Thank you for the immeasurable impact you make on the lives of people facing hunger every day. Because when we work together, we can end hunger here.
