Volunteering at Feeding the Foothills: Frequently Asked Questions

When are volunteer shifts available?

We are an industrial food-handling facility and we operate on a warehouse schedule of 6am-2pm. Currently, all volunteer opportunities (both on and off-site) occur Monday-Friday between 7am-3pm. We are working to add an afternoon shift at least once per week for high school students and others who are unavailable early in the day, but do not currently have shifts available after 3pm.

What if the shift I want is full? Can I still come in?

No, we do not allow walk-in volunteers. Anyone volunteering must be signed up for the shift prior to attending. If the shift is full, please select another date or sign up for the wait list. If you are on a waitlist and a space opens up, you will receive an email with a link to sign up for the open spot. Please sign up for the spot as soon as possible, because they often fill quickly. 

What’s the age limit to volunteer?

At this time, Feeding the Foothills allows anyone ages 12+ to help at our various opportunities.

All volunteers under 18 years old will need parental consent.

All volunteers under 15 years old must be accompanied at all times by a participating parent or guardian who joins them during their shift.

I want to bring my group. How do we sign up?

We encourage you to schedule several months in advance, particularly around major holidays (November and December especially). 

We accept group shift requests on a first come, first served basis for groups of between 10-15 people. We cannot accommodate groups of more than 15 people at any given time. Please read our Group Volunteering Info Page and submit a group request form to begin the scheduling process. 

We have limited availability for larger groups at present, so we ask for your patience as our staff works to accommodate your request.

NOTE: Feeding the Foothills counts on you to fill the spots that you reserve. If you are the point person, please make sure your group brings the full number you commit to on your scheduling form, or let our staff now in advance if you need to adjust the total. 

What if I need to cancel a shift?

We rely on volunteers to complete the deliverables for our agencies, mobile food distributions, and other programs each week. Because we are so dependent on awesome volunteers like you, last minute cancellations can impact our ability to provide the necessary quantities of food for the clients we support.

Individuals: Our system reserves a spot for you once you sign up for a shift, so it's essential that you remove your signup and release the reserved spot so that another volunteer can attend. Please go to your volunteer schedule within the volunteer portal and remove yourself from the shift by clicking the "unregister" button that appears when you click on the date you wish to remove. If you need help with this step, please click here for further instructions. 

Groups: We ask that you give us at least a week's notice if you need to reschedule or cancel a group shift, so we have time to recruit 8-15 more volunteers to fill the shift. You are also welcome to reach out if you are having trouble recruiting enough of your own volunteers, and we can ask our general body of volunteers if any of them can fill the remaining spots. That said, we do understand that emergencies happen, and we ask that you please still let us know even if the shift is less than 1 week away. Group cancellations must be emailed to volunteer@placerfoodbank.org.

What will I be doing?

Check out the descriptions of our various shifts in the Opportunities tab for more information! Each one will include a general outline of the activity and any physical demands or needs to participate. If you have a concern about potential projects or questions about accommodations, please feel free to email volunteer@placerfoodbank.org

What should I wear?

You MUST wear closed toed shoes that fully enclose your entire foot to volunteer. Please do not wear flip flops, slides, hiking sandals, or other shoes that leave any part of your foot exposed or unprotected. We cannot allow anyone in the building without safe footwear and we will have to send you home. 

Our warehouse is cold in the winters and warm in the summers, please dress accordingly.

As of May 2022, masks and face coverings are optional in our warehouse and at our distributions. We have masks available if you would like to wear one. 

How early should I arrive? What if I'm running late?

We ask that volunteers arrive 5-10 minutes before their volunteer session. You are welcome to wait at the outdoor picnic tables if the weather is pleasant, or in our lobby. Please do not enter the warehouse until directed to do so by a staff member. Volunteers attending mobile distributions should plan to arrive 5 minutes before the scheduled time to allow time to park and meet up with the group.

Shifts close ten minutes after the scheduled start time. In order to provide adequate instruction and safety information to all volunteers, we cannot admit folks who arrive later than ten minutes past the scheduled start time.  

What if I can’t stay the whole shift?

We ask that volunteers stay for the entirety of their shift. If you need to leave early, please reschedule for a different date.

Can I bring my service animal? 

Animals are not permitted in FTF programs and facilities. Volunteers may not bring animals with them. To ensure the safety of staff, clients, volunteers and the animals themselves, volunteers with ADA service animals will be considered for specific volunteer assignments on a case-by-case basis. Please email our volunteer staff IN ADVANCE if you would like to volunteer and need to be accompanied by a service animal. We cannot accommodate service animals without prior notice. 

What if I have food allergies?

Because our food is donated, we can’t guarantee that it will be allergen-free. Please take precautions in the event that you may come into contact with a food allergen.

Are you able to fulfill court-ordered hours?

We currently do not have the capacity to accommodate any court-ordered community service.  

Are you able to fulfill school-ordered hours?

We are usually able to accommodate school or other extra-curricular service hours. Please e-mail volunteer@placerfoodbank.org and let us know what you need from us in to fulfill your hours. We will let you know whether or not we can accommodate.