When I arrived at the market I met Ryan, the volunteer coordinator, and Pedro, the market manager. The first thing that I noticed was the long line of people waiting to either be checked into the market or register as customers. I found it interesting how there were about 20-25 people waiting to register at that time, and I’m curious to see if there will be a similar amount next time I come in. This made me think about the amount of food that must be available in order to accommodate all of these customers, who may also be shopping for other family members. During my first hour at the pantry, I mainly worked on packing out food items and leveling the shelves. When it started to slow down and there wasn’t much to do, Pedro showed me to the storage room where he asked me to wrap all of the celery in plastic bags. During my last hour, I was able to help a few new customers with picking out the correct amount of groceries according to the points on their shopper card. It was definitely interesting to see the initial reactions of new customers to the food pantry as some were very pleased to see that there was a wide selection, while others were slightly disappointed with how much, or little, they were able to get with their points. I tried to clearly explain the guidelines for the food pantry, but there were a few customers who felt as if they should be able to substitute certain items if they wanted more grains as opposed to protein. It was helpful to have staff and more experienced volunteers around to help with situations where customers may be frustrated with the rules. Overall, my first day was filled with learning new things about WSCAH and food pantries in general. I look forward to going in for my next shift now that I know what to expect and how I can provide better assistance to both customers and staff.
