Food bank volunteers vital to operation

Marion Ballard is one of the Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri’s most dedicated volunteers, lending a hand Monday through Friday.

At 90 years old, volunteering keeps him feeling young.

“You gotta do something to stay alive. I think that’s part of it; staying alive,” said Ballard.

He and his wife have been coming to the food bank for the last ten years.

“One of the nice things, you meet new people, it’s not the same people every day. These are my friends, my homies.”

“Literally you couldn’t get the work done unless you had people who are willing to come in and donate their time and labor,” said volunteer George Kennedy.

During the summertime, it’s tougher to keep a steady flow of volunteers.

“This is a period when an awful lot of people are vacationing or catching up with things to do in the rest of their lives, and the volunteering has fallen off pretty dramatically in the last couple of weeks,” said Kennedy.

If you’re thinking about getting involved and volunteering your time, good news, the food bank of flexible.

Anyone that has as much or as little as two hours in a day to commit would be welcome.

There is even a late evening shift for those who don’t have free time during the day.

Volunteers can come in once a day, once a week, or even once a month, whatever they can do.

“It’s better than sitting at home watching tv over and over again, if you can help, you should help. It’s a couple of hours of the day.”

If you want to get involved, you can call, email, or visit the food bank of Vandiver Drive.