2026 Volunteer Appreciation Celebration

On February 20, 2026, Charity Food Ministry hosted its annual Volunteer Appreciation Celebration in the fellowship hall, honoring the more than 45 volunteers who kept every one of our programs running throughout 2025. Together, this remarkable group contributed over 3,000 hours of service — the equivalent of a full-time staff member and a half, given freely, week after week.

3,000 Hours, One Neighbor at a Time

Those 3,000 hours are not an abstraction. They are Saturday mornings spent loading food boxes into car trunks. They are Wednesday evenings ladling soup and refilling coffee cups. They are quiet Thursday afternoons carrying grocery bags up the steps of an elderly neighbor's porch, then staying a few extra minutes to talk.

"Every number in our annual report has a volunteer's hands behind it," said Antonio Davidson, Principal Officer and Executive Director. "We can write grants and buy groceries, but we cannot manufacture the kind of care our volunteers bring through the door every week. That is the part of this ministry that money simply cannot purchase."

Recognizing Service Milestones

The evening included a shared meal prepared by our board members — a deliberate reversal of roles, since our volunteers spend most of the year cooking for everyone else. Linda Parker, our Volunteer Coordinator, read the name of every active volunteer aloud and presented service certificates recognizing milestones at the 50-, 250-, and 500-hour marks.

Several volunteers have now served continuously since our earliest distributions, when the entire operation fit on a handful of folding tables. Others joined only months ago and already anchor a weekly shift. Both matter equally: our schedule works because people show up reliably, whether they have given five hours or five hundred.

A Community That Keeps Growing

Volunteer participation grew by roughly a third over the prior year, and that growth made our 2025 program expansions possible. More hands on the packing line meant more food boxes. More drivers meant more senior deliveries. More kitchen help meant we could add meal service without cutting portions anywhere else.

We enter 2026 with new commitments already on the calendar, including additional mobile pantry stops and an expanded weekend backpack roster. Meeting those goals will take even more volunteers than last year.

How You Can Join Them

No prior experience is required, and shifts are flexible enough to fit around work and family schedules. Most volunteers begin with a single two-hour commitment and choose their own pace from there.

• Join the Saturday food box packing and distribution team
• Help cook, serve, or clean up at our Wednesday community meal
• Deliver groceries to homebound seniors on your own route and schedule
• Assist with sorting fresh produce or assembling weekend backpacks

To get started, email us at admin@charityfoodministry.org or visit our Get Involved page. To every volunteer who served in 2025 — thank you. You are this ministry.