Los Angeles Regional Food Bank

Volunteered on 3/15! It was a wonderful time and it was amazing to see the impact we were able to make at the end of the sessions. Well structured event and started/ended on time. Great staff who work there! They made the instructions clear and helped out whenever they can! Just make sure that if you do park inside the volunteer lot, that you’re able to make the full volunteering event as your car might be trapped on the inside and you’ll have to wait for the person in front of you to move their car first.

They make people that are struggling come early in the morning to get a number, and It should be first come first serve. They have no system in place, and we all have to show each other our numbers. They make everyone wait in the hot sun without water or shade.My experience with supposed Christians has been terrible. They just don’t care about the poor. They are in the shade, with their water, and they can see everyone is miserable.These conditions are especially dangerous for the elderly, and disabled. They don’t have any form of compassion. They must get government money, and can say they help the poor, elevating their status in the community. They make us wait in dangerous temperatures, getting 2nd degree burns, heat stroke, and they set it up that way. The have eyes that don’t see, and hearts that are cold, and hollow. We have to wait hours in miserable conditions to get food. I would stay far away from this church. They are not real Christians.

. . . Im at a loss by the reply and response of a member of this place responding to a grievance of a person that has a negative experience. . ! And his reply is that they Do Not Offer Foods to Individuals when in fact this place offers exactly that . ! ! Would someone from this place clarify exactly wth is actually going on please . ? !

Do we call the number to schedule an appointment to come in and pick up some food

Got on their wait list for future distribution location.

Me and my son volunteering was amazing experience.... It's very humbling to help others in need.

I’ve been volunteering at the LA Food Bank for about 2 years now and I love this place. I’m there very Saturday and it’s like my home away from home...lol. The staff there are great hard workers. The vibe there is very loving and friendly. This place is a great blessing from God. I encourage others to come join and be apart of this mighty blessing.

Showed up 2hrs late due to truck issues, and was put in a door right away. I was unloaded within 1hr with a full trailer load. Thank you Bianca for working with me and sorry for being late. Need to back in street. It's definitely doable.

I don't know why I haven't written a review of the LA Regional Food Bank but the first time I ever came here was volunteering to pack food with the LA Lakers....it was a fun experience but also I like volunteering for a good cause.... The place has been upgraded and updated since my first time and a bit more efficient... I believe minors can get their community credits volunteering here as well.... I usually go with a group that is part of either a church or other organization and I join with friends....shout out to UCLA Dept of Medicine.... Warning if you are volunteering the worst thing I did were ONIONS LOL....and you throw so many away just cuz they aren't good....oh man...don't do onions if you go! :) Most times you are bagging fruits or veggies into mesh type bags so they can be put in the LA Food Bank boxes for distribution to those in need.... Come here volunteer and do your part for the community!

Great experience volunteering at the LA Food Bank today. Everything was smooth and completely organized. It was great for our group and easy to sign up. There was parking in the front and back. We had a break in the middle but the hours flew by. We can't wait to return and volunteer again.

Giving a shoutout to the fabulous staff who runs this LA Food Bank location! Visiting from out of town and wanted to do some community service. Everyone at the facility was so nice. Really appreciated the orientation video at the beginning to help ground us all in the importance of what we'd be doing during our 3 hour shift. Thank you team for feeding families across LA - Mrs California Black United States 2026

Went to volunteer with some friends and had a great experience. We helped from 9-12pm. They had the following available: masks, gloves, water and granola bars which was great if you need a quick break. Make sure you wear closed toes shoes, something comfortable and layered because sometimes it can get cold. Truly love their vision statement: No one goes hungry in Los Angeles County. Big plus that this was a very organized volunteer experience. If you have some time this is a great way to give back to the community.

I feel great doing deeds bringing food throughout the country the whole year around, But today it hit differently bringing pinto beans from Colorado to a government food bank for the people that are less fortunate. The building is a really nice building with palm trees and flying an American flag located on the right hand side of the street. I parked in the center lane because there there is a line to check in the gate. The nice check in gave me a door right away and took about 45 minutes to unload. All the staff is very kind, grateful and friendly at this location. Hopefully I'll be returning soon.

This organization is wasting resources very sadly. I moved into an apartment over two years ago and I've left messages, emails begging them to stop delivering. I'm sure the previous tenant asked for donations. I've talked to people on the phone, left signs at my door and nothing will stop it. They leave heavy boxes blocking my door exit and the food rots. It should be easier to stop having food delivered and I know I'm not the only person this is happening to. They are only causing harm to me and wasting food.

One in eight people in Los Angeles County experiences food insecurity. Their mission: to mobilize resources to fight hunger the community. https://www.lafoodbank.org/ Go to the site and donate or volunteer. Or both. Follow GPS to the address. Park on the street or in the lot - know if you park in the lot, it's stacked parking. Wear closed toe shoes and dress in layers. Help the Food Bank help fight hunger!

So....how does this place not have 5 stars?!? It's a great place to volunteer at with friends and family. They always have plenty of tasks for volunteers to do, and they certainly appreciate the efforts. I had a great time sorting and boxing food. I saw that someone gave Los Angeles Regional Food Bank 3 stars below. He states that while other people go for school credit, he wanted to give and volunteer his time. According to him, it's a rough area, so don't bring your luxury vehicles. It's a GREAT place, but only worth 3 stars. Is it because it's a NONPROFIT...and located in a not so nice area?!? Let's pour lots of money that could be spent on feeding families so we can relocate the food bank to Beverly Hills :-) Oh...my car was fine. I even parked several blocks away. I also survived the walk all the way to my car :-)

Amazon is suppose to deliver these but they don't care about the packages last time they left my package outside in the street and yesterday they sent a text that they dropped off the package and I didn't see no amazon person or package around so I called Amazon and they said to contact the food bank and even the food bank don't answer at all.

I'm an Amazon , the workers mess with you , (me) , I have gotten extra boxes or missing boxes ,

This is one of the most organized volunteer experiences I've ever had! There was a posting on the Yelp LA Events page - asking for help. There was a link to register and soon after, we received a confirmation email which gave us the location of the warehouse (54th Street in Vernon) and directions to wear covered shoes. When we arrived, we signed waivers, watched an orientation video, and were divided into assembly lines and duties. (I was in the Green line and my duty was to place a box of pasta into bags which will be available to the needy elderly.) At the end of the lines, Quality Control checked the bags to make sure all of the contents were present, then stacked the boxes of bags onto palettes. The whole pile was cellophaned together. Wow! Our shift was from 9am to noon. Time passed by quickly! Water was provided during our session, then later, we got a spoon-shaped pen! What a cool souvenir gift! Soon after the event, we got a thank you email! So efficient! It sure was an honor to be part of a group of about 10 Yelpers who made a difference! The Los Angeles Regional Food Bank started in 1973 and is one of the top Food Banks in the nation! Their motto is "Fighting Hunger. Giving Hope." If you don't have time to volunteer with a group or as an individual, monetary donations are accepted. For just $1, 4 meals can be provided! Another option is to celebrate a birthday there! Shall we do it? Just check out their website for more info! Or check the LA Yelp Events page for the next volunteering opportunity - seems like the focus is the month of May? Please correct me if I'm mistaken...

so apparently i've had this review in my drafts since 2018. came with my hubs on a saturday morning to volunteer. its been 3 years so im a little fuzzy on the details but i remember it being very orderly. at the beginning we were stationed with the bread, we had to sort through huge pallets filled with different kind of bread (hot dog buns, sliced bread, hamburger buns, etc) and separate the expired/moldy from the rest. after that, we were sent to organize pallets of apples. it was really tiring work but definitely left with a sense of accomplishment. its really big team effort vibes when you're there too.

My friend Dorothy wanted to celebrate her birthday here at the food bank. So thirty of her friends volunteered for the morning shift. I guess if I had read my email I would have known we were going to be working the warehouse and not actually feeding the homeless. My bad, but told Jay we were going to be on skid row feeding some homeless homies. Anyways, it's all good we were many blocks away from where I thought we'd be and it was quite safe. Our task were broken up into groups. That day there were some seventy - five peeps volunteering for the food bank. They, the people getting paid for the day were telling us normally 75 to 150 people volunteer on Saturday's. It may have been a low turn-out but we got the job done. People sift through the bread trays and divided them up into categories and boxed them and put them on the pallets where I and a couple of other dudes would saran wrap them and then a forklift guy would hall them into the trucks for delivery. You can volunteer by yourself or round up some peeps to volunteer for the food bank anytime. You just have to give advance notice and show up at the specified time.

I got free boxes just from being at the park with my husband. Ate one can of black beans three weeks ago and my skin is STILL flaring I emailed Michael the ceo and he gave no concerns over my condition because there are "no other complaints over the black beans" These people are using an excuse that it's free food to feed you guys preservatives and destructive foods If I could give zero ratings I would

Transparency and cooperation are crucial in the nonprofit sector to ensure resources are used effectively for the benefit of those in need. They are not about that role it's a lot of nonprofit organization who have given them all out to the mission just to have the food bank cancel their account with out a fair hearing ... We out here in the field while you sit in your office cancelling none profit that are putting in the work ..

Parking- On the spot. It is stacked parking, so if you would like there are ample street parking available around the area too Entrance - Google maps directs you to the service entrance. Make sure to go around the Alameda street and enter from where the parking for volunteers is Event and Staff - The staff here was really energetic and the person who was giving us directions and cheering for us was really cool. We loved volunteering here as a team. We were there for the afternoon shift and we sorted around 36,000 apples. Yes, that's the maximum number of apples I would ever see in my life. It felt really good to sort them and then put them in boxes so that they can be distributed to people across LA county. This food bank is making a difference to all the people in LA and it is great to be able to help in whatever small way we could. Happy Holidays everyone!

Came today to some some community service/volunteer work for my company, since they require us to do a certain amount of hours per year. Came here, not knowing what to expect. As we get here, there are crowds forming outside the main gate, signing in and what not. As i can see, the majority of people volunteering are community involvment groups, high schools, and colleges. So we were close to 300 people, which is the most they've gotten there all year, from what i was told at least. Anyhow, the work consisted of filling up bags with food, and getting them ready to ship out. So we had 4 assembly lines Some people filled, got crates and bags ready, and other people stacked and palletized crates. Overall, depending on what your doing, your gonna be doing some work. Its warehouse work, so prepare yourself to get dirty and maybe sweat..uhhh.. but i know most of reading this dont mind a little dirty sweat..

Yelp 100 Challenge 2017 - 22/100 "Did you know that 1 in 6 people in L.A. County struggles with hunger? With your help, the Food Bank is able to leverage every $1 donated to provide four nutritious meals to hungry children, seniors, and families in L.A. County. Your support makes a difference and we hope that you consider a gift to the Food Bank. You can donate at lafoodbank.org/donate." Quote from the LA Food bank digital appreciation e-mail. This is my second time volunteering to help out the LA Food Bank. The first time was two years ago at the beginning of my MBA program. The Yelpies' reviews were spot on. I feel awful about children, seniors, and families going hungry, also I am a passionate person, so I give back my time and energy to this organization, whenever I can. My "N-B-A" team (Not M-B-A, haha, we are affectionally called by the staff and Pepperdine track team) and Pepperdine track team collaborated to inspect, filter, and pack efforts of the random food packaging items donated from the entire Los Angeles city-county driven mostly by grocery stores. The efforts started from 10:00 AM through 1:00 PM. Some advice, please try to arrive 30 minutes early to beat the horrible LA traffic and to find parking for all your homies. The volunteer's parking lot, additionally, is actually in a parking lot near 41st Pl and Long Beach Ave and this, also, is the volunteer's office for registration. PJ, the manager, mentioned that we, as a whole, accomplished superior results in a relatively short amount of time. For my fellow statisticians, nerdy stats: - 26 Pepperdine folks (includes 2 N-B-As (not M-B-As), one track coach, one track team captain) - 9,503 pounds (fruits, pastas, breads, can foods, chocolate, etc.) - 7,499 meals / mouths fed :D :D :D Next time, I would like to volunteer to pack care packages for the senior citizens! Thank you, Leena, Emma, Chianti, Anna R, Ana M, Brian, and the Pepperdine track team for a smooth operational experience and today's efforts an overwhelming success! End of the day, you receive the staff's eternal gratitude, in-person, and then follow-up digital certificate of appreciation e-mail. You, also, walk away satisfied that you helped out your community and fellow human beings. I feel so happy! :) As a result, this Saturday the rest of my MBA class volunteers, hopefully, if they have the time.

Definitely a great place to volunteer, not to mention the staff is responsive, friendly, and approachable. I've been here about 4 times now and the most recent time, I organized a volunteer event for my alumni association. Back in January when I was in the middle of planning a volunteer event, I sent an email to the general inquiry. I received 2 responses immediately from different staff members. Fast service knocked my socks off! Since Saturday mornings are their busiest times for hosting groups, consider booking at least 3 months in advance. Eli was so helpful and thorough, the whole process to set up a service was seamless. My group ended up coming yesterday and we had a fantastic time. The staff is also punctual, we were all inside watching the informational video by 8:30am and started working by 9am. This time around, we were sorting vegetables/fruits area. It was hard work, but none the less, rewarding. Our group of 25 was a well oiled machine! We literally didn't finish until almost 12pm, just as they promised. Some tips for when volunteering is to consider wearing a backpack filled with water and snacks. Closed toe shoes are required. In the past, I've helped with sorting bread, perishable items, and this time around veggies/fruits. My favorite is sorting bread so far. I'll be back soon enough for another service in the near future!

While enjoying usual child size hot chocolate at Starbucks, I do an update go to starbucks.com/responsibility/community/foodshare for this! Anyway, yes there a Los Angeles California Food Bank! If I remember 1741 Forty First zip 90058! Dodgers the baseball team is 90012! Glad help any Food Bank any Salvation Army Corps! Glad all them use donations to help the children, this situation beautiful child friendly Los Angeles (The Angels)! I been writing to this of Food Bank quite awhile! The newsletters, when first started, had list of major supporters! One was then Los Angeles Dodgers manager or skipper Tommy La Sorda! Wow, even baseball helps their hometown Food Bank! For every one dollar donated, is somehow turned into seven dollar worth of food, that should help lots the children! Except for Christmas time when I can put into my Salvation Army kettle, I try get rid pennies, today I donating $1.03! That a dollar bill and three pennies, that will be $7.21 worth of food for the children in Los Angeles! Thank to this Food Bank for helping others not as fortunate! Good luck to this Food Bank!

I've volunteered here twice, and both were eye-opening experiences. It doesn't get past me that we Yelpers are raving about gourmet dishes while some are going without. It saddens me that people go hungry, and I donate and volunteer at the Food Bank when I get the chance. The tasks vary. The first time, I got a bunch of people at work to spend half a day there sorting and packing fruit. You get a good workout from it. This last time we sorted through donated food. It was so surprising how little of it we were able to keep. Most were damaged, spoiled or even half-eaten. There were also plenty of non-food items. So the next time you have some time to spare, consider going there for half a day. It'll be good for the soul.

What a great group volunteer opportunity, recently went right before Thanksgiving with some classmates and it felt great to give back to the community. A lot of corporations volunteer here too, the day I went I saw Samsung. I could tell because their logo was emblazoned on these blue vests they were wearing, snazzy! Our group just was on sorting canned food items duty, putting dented cans or cans not meeting their standard on another conveyor belt and good ones into boxes and then on to pallets. The boxes are sorted by type: vegetables, soups, meats, cereals/pastas, candy, beverages and so on. The Food Bank sorts dented in cans with liquid, since the dent damages the inner lining and can be a potential health hazard. Good to not all items are wasted, they have their own guide lines and expired food items are depending on the item can be used up to 5 years. This was a great learning experience on seeing just a part of how donated food gets redistributed to the community, I highly suggest if you're looking for an active on-the-feet volunteer opportunity to check out LA Regional Food Bank.The work is not hard and since they schedule only 4 hour time slots, you won't break your back either, with the time flying by just like flying like canned food items off of a conveyor belt. If you can't donate your time think about donating items, the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank can accept dry, shelf-stable, refrigerated and frozen food items, prepared foods, foodservice items, personal care and cleaning products, office supplies and equipment, mislabeled and unlabeled products, obsolete promotional items, and bulk and damaged products. Call the Food Bank's Product Donations Department at (323) 234-3030 extension 161 with questions about what types of items the Food Bank can accept.

I volunteered here Jan 9th, with my friend's philanthropic company. They are very organized and its a great opportunity to give back. They have two shifts one in the morning and one in the afternoon. They have a couple different stations to help out, they assign you to your station. You can even come here with your friends on your birthday, they give you a special birthday hat. Be sure to sign up before you come, I saw one guy who walked on get turned away. Some people had to lift heavy boxes and crates, bring your gloves just in case. They even had a v-day single special, where you can meet someone special and give back. Meet lots of good people and give back!

One of my favorite places to volunteer! They have a really well done volunteer program and they aren't scattered like many places I've served. I've come here a few times now through USC and also work. They start off the shift with a video on how you'll be impacting the community. The LA Food Bank is the largest food bank in the community and they served over 800,000 meals per week to families. It is great to see so many people and organizations help out! You'll be packing food from Ralph's, Trader Joe's, and regular donor. I came here recently for an advertising industry's volunteer day and they served food and played music! I thought it was a great idea for a music station and food truck to sponsor the event. Nearly 50 volunteers showed up! Heads up - unless you find street parking outside, it's tandem parking on the lot. Several volunteers were blocked in but if you find the driver, people will move.

Come volunteer your time at the LA Food Bank! I've been coming here for the past 6-8 years to volunteer whenever I could. Luckily, I started working for a company that encourages volunteering and gives us actual "volunteer time off" to give back to the communities. It's been a great experience ever single trip here. The LA Food Bank consists of 4 different sites within the same general area. Most weekends you will find yourself working in the main area off 41st street working the produce. On weekdays, volunteers are needed on the back side of the facility to sort miscellaneous items. Must register online as individual or within a group and bring a signed waiver (the waiver is pretty intense but the chances of getting hurt are slim here). Only 14+ years old and older allowed to volunteer, no exceptions. You will not only have fun volunteering.. the time will go quick and its also a chance to meet some people you're working with! At the end of the volunteer shift, an employee will generally let the group know the total accomplishment completed during the time frame and how many meals are served! Great feeling of satisfaction =)

A great place to volunteer a few hours. I have never seen so much foodstuff in my life. How fortunate that L.A. has this resource available to anyone who might need a hand with providing a meal for themselves for others. I am so grateful to have lent a hand with a bunch of my peeps from work! Do come sometime to lend a hand. Parking is stacked - which means if you have to leave before the end of the volunteering time, park on the street. http://www.lafoodbank.org/volunteer/volunteer-opportunities.aspx to register. Be prepared to stand continuously, bend and twist and lift about 20 pounds or more of produce. That means dress comfortably, and wear closed shoes. Also bring your drink or snack. And for pity's sake, gentlemen, wear good fitting pants. I really don't need to see anyone's lower regions when they're bent over.

To give back to your community is one of the greatest gifts you can give. I like to volunteer because investing in one's community will yield great results in the long run. So four hours of my Saturday morning at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank was not much of a sacrifice. I was impressed with the number of people volunteering at this place in that it was packed. Most of the volunteers were young Asian college students or high school students. I asked the high schoolers why they were volunteering and most responded with "Oh, I need to boost my resume for college applications." The second thing that amazed me was the amount of food that goes to waste in our city supermarkets and restaurants. Most of the food donated were products that were past their expiration dates so they couldn't sell them at the store but they were still edible. Our task for the morning was to separate the pallets of food into different categories. Dry products, things supposed to go into a cooler and products that need to go into the freezer. I actually had a lot of fun spending my morning here in that I was not only doing something good for community but I met a lot of like minded people volunteering.

Volunteered here for the first time on Thursday. Checked in and waited a couple minutes for then to start the introduction slide show. We then went on a tour before arriving at the area we would be working. We were going to be separating and sorting. They couldn't distribute any form of milk, nestle products, or Mara products so if you are donating to then don't donate those items cuz they will be thrown away!!! I was put to work separating the items that had already passed the expiration inspection. We sorted things into categories like baking, snacks, and condiments. It was cool to see some of the things companies were donating. There was some stuff that I cant even afford right now! Haha it definitely made me appreciate the companies that were donating more. I was told to write that I would be a repeat volunteer the next time I sign up online so I could get a badge to keep track of my hours.

Truly a great organization. It is so important to have places such as the LA Food Bank to help those that are less fortunate in the different areas. I was so happy that my company organized an event during the work week no less for us to be able to go and give back to the community. I've gone before with friends and I'm just so thrilled to be working for a company that understands the importance of helping out those that are in need of the food that the LA Food Bank provides. I look forward to my next visit to help.

Get here early so you can get street parking and not be stuck in the parking lot when you leave! And being a snack! Good thing about this LA Food Bank site versus at least one of the others is they provide gloves and aprons to help prevent you from getting dirty. But in general I would suggest bringing some gloves. It's a great place to help others!

Volunteer Review: Parking: If you're going to volunteer, don't park on the street, there is plenty of parking on site. Just pull in through the gate and you can walk right into the facility. Staff: Really nice, they give you a brief introduction at the start of your shift, which is about 4 hours and then you just have at it. Working: I sorted a bunch of fruits and veggies & then switched over to the bread section. It nice and cool in the facility, which is a plus when you're working. Overall: It was really nice to see that companies are not just throwing away their food, but giving to those that are in need. I usually shop Sam's club & I saw a bunch of items that I usually buy, in the piles of food that I sorted. So the food people are getting are quality items, which is great! Volunteering is always really rewarding and fun, especially when you go with a group.

I've volunteered many years at the LA Regional Food Bank. I feel happy about helping others. I hope some day I never need any help, but it's comforting to know there are people out there (myself included) who work to help others.

Our church had a great opportunity to give back to our community through this Foodbank. We volunteered Saturday morning from 830am - 12pm. Upon arrival, you need to register and submit your signed waivers (make sure to bring a printed copy of your signed waivers). You are given a sticker indicating you've registered. Then you are split into groups and given specific assignments. Our group assigned to sorting through breads and produce. It was amazing to experience community and to know that each food would be feeding a family in need. You can register through their website and organize your own group! The process was quite simple and can be executed with ease.

I work here and it is the most gratifying job I've Ever had...until yesterday. A co-worker stole my wallet. I reported this incident to my supervisor and no report was wrote up, which is policy. So, to me they are harboring a thief!!!

***100th Review*** As I've seen on other yelpers' reviews, for my 100th, I wanted to write about something special. So I chose the LA Food Bank, having volunteered at this location for 29 hours over a 4 day period. The people that work here are awesome. They need volunteers! They dont put you through hoops to volunteer. You just call and give them your name and they will let you know when you should come. Be prepared to get a good workout and sweat a little. The work isn't easy or glamorous. Everyone wants to volunteer at places where you interact with the people you are helping. People especially like to work with children. This is to satisfy their self-gratification of directly seeing the results of people they help. Here its different. Its behind the scenes. There are no smiles of thankful people. Its hard work that must be done. Theres no glory. Theres only sweat and the satisfaction of knowing you got some work done. Theres the comradery of the people that volunteer with you for a few hours knowing you all work towards the same cause. Try it. Start your 2012 year with something positive. Everyone volunteers during Christmas season because its a season of giving. No one wants to volunteer Jan-March... Lets change that. Happy New Year Everyone.

I was fortunate enough to be raised understanding my privilege to the extent any kid can, and it's become second nature to only buy as much food as I need, save my leftovers, and remember to donate during holidays. But it is still astonishing to see how much food gets wasted or tossed away on a daily basis, and a day at the Food Bank only reminded me how much more I can do. I volunteered with the Food Bank as part of a holiday project through my job, and it was a wonderful experience I recommend to every Yelper, restaurant-goer, human being. Organizing a volunteer session was very easy, thanks to the efficiency and processes in place at the Food Bank. We received confirmation emails and waiver forms before arriving - which helped since we were volunteering as a large group. They have a private parking lot and a variety of potential volunteer activities, depending on their current needs. The activities you might help out with include sorting through donated items, assembling care packages, or building backpack lunches for their school program. Orientation was quick and easy; staff were available to help us answer questions regarding procedures and background information on the organization. The day I visited, they needed to sort through the warehouse of donations- this was a last-minute change to our planned itinerary. However, this meant spending the morning in a huge refrigerated warehouse. I arrived in flats and a cardigan, and so had to stand through numb toes and a lingering chill. Of course this only motivated me to move around more, and the feeling after-the-fact more than made up for any stiffness or cold I experienced. If you have a condition or are susceptible in cold weather, I suggest dressing in layers to suit the needs of the day! At the end of the day, my group of 22 volunteers stood, slightly aching from a job properly done, to hear we had cleared over 5,000 pounds of food, ready to distribute to people who need it. I felt like I had accomplished more in one morning than I had in weeks. Not only that, but I felt closer with my coworkers and continue to remain so. I won't say I hope, instead that I WILL return, and invite you to join me!

Volunteering my own personal time, whether I do it by myself or with friends. I try to volunteer at least once a month to give my time to help those in need because I dont have much $$ to donate. I volunteered for the food bank during their last volunteer day for 2010. I signed up as an individual volunteer. I came in, parked in the designated lot (they park you one person behind the other, so trying to be ready to wait when you leave), and signed in. Upon sign in, they hand you a label that has a food/job group and number. I got placed in juice, group 6. Once you get your label, they give you 30-45 minutes to mingle and partake in their continental breakfast. Once you are ready to begin, they play a video that shows you what you do as a volunteer and who it helps. It was pretty great to know that my few hours of sorting food will actually make it to someone in need. Once the video is over, then they explain to you what is to come and what to do next. They lost 1/2 a star for the simple fact that I could not hear a word coming out of the loudspeaker when they would give us instructions. It was just muffled noise. I had to ask other volunteers where to go and what to do. The other downside (minus 1/2 star) is that we had to open many, many boxes of juice (four hours worth of opening boxes). It would have been nice to have a boxcutter and some gloves available to us. The four hours went by quickly, and all in all I had a great time. I loved that you could get in, give your service, and get on with your day! I will be back again in a few months. =)

Bravo to the staff at the LA Regional Food Bank -- their volunteer operation runs like a well-oiled machine. I've done plenty of volunteer service in my day and organizations like the food bank are truly rare. I imagine, because they work with so many students from local school districts where community service is compulsory, the volunteer coordinators have had to bolster the service learning speeches. As a volunteer, you'll get a brief explanation about what the food bank does, who provides the food, how it's packaged and who ultimately receives the food and why. It definitely helps make sense when you're putting together boxes with USDA apple juice, canned chicken and peanut butter. A great deal of their products are commodities provided by the USDA and the remainder is what large corporations and grocery store chains are able to send. If what's available doesn't meet the nutritional requirements for children and seniors, the food bank purchases food with monetary donations to make up for the lack of substantial nutritional items. And they do this to try to feed the close to one million individuals who are at risk of going hungry in Los Angeles County. The food bank welcomes volunteers Tuesday through Saturday, with Saturdays (obviously) drawing the bulk of their volunteer labor. Groups of all kind will show up... high school and college students, corporate employees, and other non-profit or government groups like AmeriCorps*NCCC. After a mini-tour of the Costco-like warehouses, you'll be assigned a station along a conveyor belt and the work begins. You'll either be opening or breaking down boxes, stocking goods for packaging, assembling the individual boxes or carrying the finished packages onto pallets. It's pretty tough work with a decent amount of reaching, bending, and lifting. I'm not sure what the quantifiables were for the day, but in about three hours we were able to completely deplete the food bank's supply of canned peas and came really close to finishing off the apple juice :) A few things to be mindful of if/when you volunteer... it's a bit out of the way near the City of Vernon. You'll dodge a lot of semis trying to get there. Also, it's a warehouse -- wear clothes you don't mind dirtying up, especially with all the cardboard box dust that becomes airborne.

I volunteered here with my company one day. We only did it for a few hours, but it was fun. The other volunteers here are really nice. There's a pretty dedicated team of volunteers who seem to come in regularly. We didn't interact much with the other volunteers, but that's probably more our fault since we were working right next to them. Basically, we sorted through boxes of food for a quality inspection to see what can be given to families. It's interesting to see what REAL expiration dates are...for example, hersey chocolate should only be eaten 3 months after the expiration date (who knew! i thought that stuff didn't actually expire!). Also, cereal can last 1-2 years after it's expiration date...anyway, you learn stuff like that. It's also interesting to see that some people think it's okay to donate half-eaten food, used stuff and moldy baby food. Someone had donated an OPENED bottle of spaghetti sauce that had started to mold. Disgusting! Another person donated a box of half-eaten cookies. Someone else donated half a can of coffee. Come on! Either donate something new / unused or don't donate at all. Overall, the experience was nice. I got to help out and learn new things at the same time...which is all you can really ask for. Also, the organization really does help the community a lot.

Pretty cool place to volunteer. Most of the folks that come to this volunteer opportunitty come to get credit for their organization, however for me this was just a way to give back during the holiday season. Didn't take as long as they told us it might take, but definitely a lot of bending down and sorting through vegetable and fruit bins. The building itself is in a rough part of town, and parking usually involves parking on the street. Don't bring your luxury car.

MUCH volunteers are definitely needed for a job like this. So many donated goods to sort through and the safety of the recipients are ensured by volunteers. After a quick video and orientation, you are given gloves and put to work. I think you can show up on any day there is a volunteer opportunity (check on their website) without registering online; you just have to let them know you are an individual volunteer and not with any of the groups. A large number of high school students are usually there on Saturdays. I've been there on weekdays and I've got to say that Saturdays have the most volunteers. They have a lot for you to park in or you may park in the street. It's relatively safe. Remember to bring your liability release form and dress appropriately. I haven't seen anyone get kicked out because of how they dressed. I did see a girl volunteer in a skirt once. Prohibited attire: tank tops, sleeveless shirts, sandals, open-toe or high-heeled shoes. I think it's weird that they do not allow you to go sleeveless but do not prohibit shorts or skirts. would like an explanation. There are different areas you may be working in. You may be checking packaged goods, fruits and vegetables, or bread. There is a refrigerated cold room that you may want to bring a sweater to work in but that temperature was a good temperature for me to work in. I was wearing short-sleeves and I didn't feel it was too cold. In all of the times I've helped at the Foodbank, the cold room is the one time I did not sweat. I liked it. If it were up to me, then I'd probably work in there every time. They have references as to how many months past the expiration date something could be. Also, they trash Mars products. They said they don't waste anything...but I had to throw away so many perfectly good bags of M&M's and Snickers (Mars products). If they don't accept Mars products, then they can keep it to themselves, put it in the break room, or let us snack on it as a parting gift. But to throw it away... I think it's same for Nestle products too. Though I am sure some of these products make it into those boxes....lots of the volunteers don't know which are Mars products. heck, I don't even know all of them. I would volunteer here more often if it weren't so far away from me.

Came here to do some volunteer work for a class I'm taking at CSULA and it was a great place. The atmosphere was very friendly and the people who work there are super nice! They have tons of things that need to be done so you are always on your toes. Loved it and plan on doing it again!

My favorite things about volunteering at the LA foodbank: 10) picking up a breakfast donut on my way over 9) light to moderate workout 8) meet cool people 7) paying it forward 6) conveyor belts 5) inspirational video shown before you start 4) predicting weight of boxes before placing on pallet 3) pallets and pallet plastic wrapper machine 2) sometimes you get free Popsicles 1) the cheers when your team finishes for the day

Arrived a few minutes law for my volunteering. Not a big deal. Anyways, signed in, watched a video and was given a tour of the place. There was other people volunteering but I happened to be the only person actually another girl be volunteering to giveback. I was volunteering with Pinkberry. Met the CEO and was working my arms like crazy. I liked it and I already planned few more days. It was fun!

While I believe in their mission, my volunteer experience to the food bank was heart breaking. The introductory video for volunteers showed a 300 lb obese man and his skinny daughter who cried because she had to skip meals every other day. Why was CPS not called to investigate the father? Why did the food bank fail to realize this man has more fat around his gut than his starving daughter's entire body weight?

When I think about how much of an effect the LA Food Bank has on the lives of people who are struggling to feed themselves from day to day, I can't possibly give this establishment less than 5 stars. For those of us who don't wonder where or when our next meal will be coming, it's hard to comprehend how real a problem hunger is for people in LA. I don't have much spare money to donate, but with places like this, I can still give back by donating my time. Go onto their website to sign up for a shift, and don't forget to bring your confirmation on the day of. Our shift was from 8:30-12, and after watching a brief video about the food bank, we were put to work. The tasks may vary, but the times I've been here I have sorted fruit, and sorted various donated items into boxes so they are ready to send out. Sometimes it's really straightforward, but the group leaders do need to work on giving better instruction sometimes. Unfortunately, a lot of good food does go to waste (R.I.P. all the cookies, pastries, and cakes we had to throw out), but it's better that it gets a second chance to feed someone through here rather than being dumped at the store. Thanks, LA Food Bank, for providing a valuable service to the community!

I've volunteered at the Los Angeles Food Bank two times now. Once with the old company I used to work at, and then again in 2012 for my 28th birthday party. I don't know how I did it, but I somehow managed to get 19 of my friends to volunteer at a freezing warehouse, packing food into boxes, at 8:00 am on a Saturday in December. It was a blast though. And as a token of the LA Food Bank's appreciation, they got me some balloons and gave me a nice shout-out before we all got to work. I love doing right by others, and I'm glad the Food Bank allows me to do that.

This place is one of the first places that I've gone to for my new years resolution (to volunteer any place at least once a month). I was very impressed with the place. All the workers were very friendly and your team mates were fun to work with too. I go to work upstairs packing away care packages for senior citizens, women and children. It involved a little heavy lifting cause of the cans but other than that, no big deal. There were two bags per box and they were places on conveyor belts and we basically put things into the bags and then stacked them away. I really enjoyed volunteering here and I'll definitely be back. Plus there was free popsicles after! :) Note: Parking was very limited, try and come early. There's a lot of double parking but if you don't want to, you can park on the street, but in the lot is safer since there's a guard. If you're one who doesn't like to get dirty, you may want to bring some latex gloves. After picking up more than 400+ cans and opening boxes, your hands get quite dirty. There are sinks downstairs but you don't really get a break. Bring a friend, it makes the time pass a little quicker. Enjoy it! :)

It's hard to 'review' a food bank but the more exposure this place gets, the better. If you're looking for a spot to volunteer -- or if you have been assigned to do community service (hey, I don't judge) -- this is the place. I signed up very last second and was very glad I did. When you get here, you'll watch a short video on what the food bank does and after you'll take a quick tour. Then, it's off to work, work, work! I have never been so exhausted -- but this was a GOOD exhausted. I was with a couple families, a school group, and two groups of friends. We had to organize and distribute cans into packages for distribution. Does it sound glamorous? No....but it was one of the most fulfilling things I've ever done. You'll feel the same way, so sign up and give some of your time. Next time I come, I'm bringing a group of friends.