INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration is joining forces with Feeding Indiana’s Hungry to encourage Hoosiers to resume or start new volunteer service at one of Indiana’s food banks and other charitable food distribution sites.
Volunteers will be urgently needed as members of the Indiana National Guard will end their temporary, six-month deployment to aid Indiana’s food banks on Sept. 30. Since being deployed in early April, guardsmen served more than 36 million meals to more than four million Hoosiers.
The charitable food distribution network operates 13 regional locations across the state, which provide food for distribution to community-based pantries. Locations continue to face an increased demand for food by Hoosiers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hoosiers can volunteer by filling out a brief form at OperationFood.IN.gov. They will be contacted by their regional food bank to match them with volunteer assignments. Since the early days of the pandemic, food banks have seen dramatic drops in volunteers as Hoosiers stayed home, which was especially true among Hoosiers over age 60, who make up the bulk of food bank volunteers. At the same time, the demand for food has increased sharply due to the economic downturn due to COVID-19. Some dedicated volunteers have returned to help on a limited basis, but food banks and pantries are now prepared to again use volunteers regularly to safely distribute food.