Welcome to the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina! Join us this month and DONATE through our Virtual Fuel Drive!
Thank you for your interest in volunteering at the Sandhills warehouse. We would love for you to come in to help! During the 05-06 fiscal year, Sandhills volunteers logged over 4500 hours which is equivalent to 2 full-time employees. Volunteers help with repackaging food, quality-control, and special events. We could not do what we do without volunteers - thank you!

We hope that you will find an opportunity to fit your interests and we look forward to seeing you soon. For more information or with questions, please contact our Sandhills Operations Coordinator or call 910.692.5959 ext. 2402. Please also visit our FAQs page.

What Does a Volunteer Do?

Warehouse volunteers: Warehouse volunteers help to sort and repackage 40% of our warehouse inventory. Groups and individuals can help with: sorting fresh produce into smaller boxes; repackaging products from food manufacturers and distributors; and, putting bulk items into family size portions. For more information on warehouse volunteering please see the Who can volunteer? section below.

Office Assistant Volunteer: Office Assistant volunteers assist our staff with filing, mailing, data entry, reception desk support, and clerical duties. Experience with computers is a plus! Volunteers interested in this opportunity need to fill out the all other opportunities volunteer form.

Agency Site Monitor: Monitors assist staff in efficient management and monitoring of Food Bank partner agencies. Monitors visit the agencies to insure safe food storage, adequate record keeping, and good stewardship of Food Bank product, and they communicate Food Bank policies and procedures. Volunteers interested in this opportunity need to fill out the all other opportunities volunteer form.

Speakers Bureau and Agency Fair Volunteer: The purpose of the Speakers Bureau program is to spread awareness about hunger in North Carolina and across the nation. Volunteers are trained to become advocates of the Food Bank and speak on behalf of the organization. For more information on the Speakers Bureau program or to fill out a Speakers Bureau Volunteer Form, please go to our Speakers Bureau page.

Special Events Volunteer: Special food and fundraising events, such as Heart of Carolina, National Association of Letter Carriers Food Drive, and Hunger Relief Day at the State Fair, are always in need of volunteer support. Volunteers interested in this opportunity need to fill out the all other opportunities volunteer form.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Kids Café: Kids Cafe provides children at risk of hunger with nutritious meals and academic and health education. Volunteer roles include: tutoring, meal preparation, educational activities, and mentoring. We prefer volunteers who can commit to the children by volunteering on a consistent basis. Volunteers interested in this opportunity need to fill out the all other opportunities volunteer form.

Who can volunteer?

Individuals: Volunteers 16 years and older can join us anytime during warehouse volunteer hours. All individuals must sign up in advance. This allows us an opportunity to prepare a project suitable for you and to ensure that everyone has a meaningful volunteer experience while they are here. During weekdays, volunteers can choose the length of their volunteer shift. During our weekend hours, we have set shift times and ask that volunteers adhere to these times. To sign up, please review our guidelines and fill out an individual warehouse volunteer form. You may also contact our Sandhills Operations Coordinator or call 910.692.5959 ext. 2402. All volunteers under the age of 18 must have a volunteer form signed by a parent or guardian before they can volunteer with us. If you are in need of hours for community service, please review our community service page.

Youth: Volunteers between the ages of 12-15 years old can join us anytime during volunteer hours if they are accompanied by an adult. All individuals must sign up in advance. This allows us an opportunity to prepare a project suitable for you and to ensure that everyone has a meaningful volunteer experience while they are here. During weekdays, volunteers can choose the length of their volunteer shift. During our weekend hours, we have set shift times and ask that volunteers adhere to these times. To sign up, please review our guidelines and fill out an individual warehouse volunteer form. You may also contact our Sandhills Operations Coordinator or call 910.692.5959 ext. 2402. All volunteers under the age of 18 must have a volunteer form signed by a parent or guardian before they can volunteer with us. If you are in need of hours for community service, please review our community service page.

Children: We currently do not have any volunteer opportunities for youth under the age of 12 however youth are welcome to tour our facility. For more information, please contact our Sandhills Operations Coordinator or call 910.692.5959 ext. 2402.

Groups and Families: We welcome groups of various sizes in our warehouse. Volunteering with the Food Bank is a great activity for school, business, civic or religious groups. All groups or families must sign up in advance. This allows us an opportunity to prepare a project suitable for your group or family and to ensure that everyone has a meaningful volunteer experience while they are here. During weekdays, volunteers can choose the length of their volunteer shift however we do recommend a minimum of 2 hours. During our weekend hours, we have set shift times and ask that volunteers adhere to these times. To sign up, please contact our Sandhills Operations Coordinator or call 910.692.5959 ext. 2402.

Volunteer Hours

Monday through Friday: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Second Saturday of the month: 9:00 am - 12:00 pm

Please note that during special projects and events, regularly scheduled hours will not occur. Sandhills staff will notify volunteers of any changes.

Holiday closing dates

New Years Day-*Good Friday-*Memorial Day-The last two days of June-Independence Day-*Labor Day-Thanksgiving Weekend-December 22 - January 1.

*We are closed for the corresponding Saturday on three day weekends.