Illinois: Volunteer Opportunities

Join us and spread the word to your community

Check out all volunteer opportunities for Illinois below:

Midwest Food Bank- Normal, IL

As a faith-based organization, it is the mission of Midwest Food Bank to share the love of Christ by alleviating hunger and malnutrition locally and throughout the world and providing disaster relief; all without discrimination. Our vision is to provide industry-leading food relief to those in need while feeding them spiritually.

Address:

2031 Warehouse Road

Normal, IL 61761

Website: www.midwestfoodbank.org

How to Sign Up: There are many ways to volunteer at Midwest Food Bank, including as an individual, with a group, or as a core volunteer. Please visit https://volunteer.midwestfoodbank.org to find volunteer opportunities at a Midwest Food Bank location near you.

Midwest Food Bank, Peoria IL

As a faith-based organization, it is the mission of the Midwest Food Bank to share the love of Christ by alleviating hunger and malnutrition locally and throughout the world and providing disaster relief; all without discrimination. Our vision is to provide industry-leading food relief to those in need while feeding them spiritually.

Address: 9005 N Industrial Rd, Peoria IL 61615

Website: https://www.midwestfoodbank.org/

How to Sign Up: There are many ways to volunteer at Midwest Food Bank, including as an individual, with a group, or as a core volunteer. For Iowa residents, you can consider helping with the Quad Cities satellite distribution of food that is held once a month. Please visit this link to see the needs for volunteers: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0549a8ae28a6fb6-mfbquad

Greater Chicago Food Depository

As Cook County, Illinois' leading hunger-relief organization, the Food Depository spearheads a united community effort to bring food, dignity, and hope to more than 800,000 people each year. Over the last 40 years, the organization has grown to provide approximately 100 million pounds of food annually, the equivalent of more than 300,000 meals each day, through a network of over 700 pantries, shelters, soup kitchens, and other community-based programming. The organization also implements innovative solutions to address the root causes of hunger and food insecurity - investing in programs that strengthen the health and economic stability of communities, including federal benefits outreach and workforce development programs.

Address:

4100 West Ann Lurie Place

Chicago, IL 60632

Website: https://www.chicagosfoodbank.org/

We have the following volunteer opportunities:

1) Repack: Volunteer "repack" sessions in our warehouse are essential to our daily impact! Typical activities include repacking bulk products into family-sized portions, sorting and categorizing donated food items, and gleaning fresh produce items and bread. The Food Depository can easily accommodate groups of up to 29, and can make special arrangement for groups of up to 100.

2) Kids Day: One Saturday per month, the Food Depository hosts a Kids Day. These repack sessions are designated for families or groups with children ages 5-11. We welcome families and groups of up to 8 volunteers with one adult for every two children. During winter and summer breaks, we also host bonus Kids Days.

3) Mobile: Mobile pantries, including FRESH Truck and Lunch Bus services, provide off-site volunteer opportunities in the communities we serve.

4) Drivers/Delivery: Two-person teams deliver fresh produce to our network of member agencies each weekday morning, as well as food for Healthy Student Markets. Volunteers drive the summer Lunch Bus to distribute children’s meals. Vehicles are provided. Volunteer drivers must go through an application process. Drivers must be at least 21 years old and willing to commit to regular volunteering.

5) Volunteer Ambassador: Dedicated, regular volunteers can help assist other volunteers and help repack sessions run smoothly as an Ambassador.

How to Sign Up: Please visit the easy-to-use volunteer page (https://www.chicagosfoodbank.org/volunteer/) for more information and to sign up, or contact volunteerservices@gcfd.org to learn more. For group opportunities and engagement related to Albertsons or Jewel Osco, please contact Matthew Crossett at mcrossett@gcfd.org.

The Salvation Army

At The Salvation Army, we are dedicated to “doing the most good”. We are made up of thousands of officers, soldiers, staff, volunteers, donors, and partners working together to holistically meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of our most vulnerable neighbors. We do this through programs designed to combat homelessness and hunger, provide safe spaces for kids after school and on the weekends, achieve and maintain sobriety and give hope to the hopeless. The Salvation Army North and Central Illinois Division provides these services to people in need throughout greater Chicagoland, Northern Illinois, and Central Illinois. The Salvation Army is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations are tax-deductible as allowed by U.S. law.

Address: 5040 N Pulaski Rd, Chicago, IL 60630

Website: https://centralusa.salvationarmy.org/metro/volunteer/

How to Sign Up: There are a myriad of ways in which one can volunteer with us. Whether it be in person opportunities at our food banks and shelters, remote work creating hygiene kits and writing greeting cards or anything in between, we have opportunities for all people to get involved however they see fit.