● Meals on wheels in Charlotte-Mecklenburg ●
NEW!: Afternoon volunteer work opportunities
July 7, 2010
A number of changes at Friendship Trays have combined to create some new early-afternoon volunteer opportunities at Friendship Trays. And we'd like you to know about them.
We're inviting volunteers to join us from 1 p.m. to about 3 p.m. to package and bag up trays that leave South End for satellite delivery sites early the next morning. The jobs are flexible, so if you could work one hour but not the other on one day or another, we'd like to hear from you.
Early
in the afternoon, volunteers will work with staff in the kitchen to
package salads, fruits, breads and the like in light-colored paper
trays. Once filled, the trays are sealed in plastic, as in the photo of
the bread, crackers, strawberries and blueberries at right.
After about 150 trays are prepared, volunteers will work in the foyer to prepare food bags for routes. The task involves filling an insulated bag with the trays and beverages specified on a route sheet. Attention to detail is vital in this job -- volunteer drivers in the field must have the correct number and kinds of meals to complete deliveries.
Interested in working toward a good cause? Interested in detail? Call Volunteer Coordinator Lani Lawrence at 704-333-9229 to tell us when you can help. Or hou can e-mail her.
These early-afternoon
volunteer slots have emerged from an evolutionary change inspired by the
need to save gasoline.
About a quarter of the meals delivered to area households each midday are picked up by route drivers at seven satellite sites across Mecklenburg County. Those sites are nearer to the drivers and to the recipients, cutting the distances that volunteers must drive. Bags for those routes are prepared in the afternoon, then refrigerated until early morning when volunteers or staff drive the bags to the satellite sites.
If you could help us an hour a week or two hours every two weeks or whatever, please give Volunteer Coordinator Lani Lawrence a call at 704-333-9229 as we make up a master schedule of volunteers to help produce meals each weekday afternoon.
