(From left) Cathy Ingles of Plumwood, Glenna Samuels of London, and Irene Vernier of Plumwood assist in setting up for HELP House’s weekly hot meal service for people in need. All three have been volunteers at the London outreach center for over two years.
(Posted Dec. 23, 2015)
By Kristy Zurbrick, Madison Editor
HELP House has no trouble recruiting volunteers for seasonal outreach projects, but could use more manpower for day-to-day operations throughout the year.
The non-profit organization runs a food and clothing pantry at 122 E. Center St., London. People in need can visit HELP House once a week for food. The pantry serves nearly 1,000 people a month.
“HELP House was founded in 1998. The program has grown but the volunteer base has not,” said Chandra Kelly, volunteer coordinator.
HELP House employs one warehouse worker. All other staff are unpaid. The organization relies on grant funding and donations to cover facility rental, food purchases, utility costs, and program supplies.
“We need the community to get involved,” Kelly said.
Volunteer opportunities are as follows:
• Mondays—HELP House serves a hot meal to approximately 280 people every Monday night during food pantry hours, 5 to 7 p.m. Volunteers are needed to prepare the meal, distribute it to pantry visitors, and deliver it to shut-ins in the area. The meal preparation takes place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Helpers also are needed to clean the kitchen and handle client check-in and checkout for the pantry.
• Tuesdays—Volunteers are needed from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. to stock shelves with the Mid Ohio Food Bank delivery and to organize the facility’s food, household and clothing sections in preparation for the following day’s open pantry hours.
• Wednesdays—The pantry is open from 9 a.m. to 12 noon. Volunteers are needed to help with client check-in, checkout, restocking shelves, clean-up, and separating bulk items.
• Saturdays—The pantry is open from 9 to 11 a.m. Check-in duties are covered, but help is needed with checkout, restocking, bulk item separation, and clean-up.
“Ideally, we would like to have 10 or more volunteers per pantry day. We especially need help on Wednesdays,” Kelly said.
For more information on becoming a HELP House volunteer, contact Chandra Kelly at chandrakelly@columbus.rr.com or (614) 202-1741.
