Angel Food Kitchen: Volunteer Training
Description
Many members of our community do not have enough to eat so Angel Food Kitchen offers home cooked meals and a food pantry. We welcome volunteers from ages 16 to 60 but we do ask them to attend a training session for working in the kitchen and dining room. Unfortunately not everyone who volunteers will be able to join our staff members working in the kitchen and with clients in the dining room. Angel Food Kitchen is well-organized and certain routines need to be followed carefully so delicious meals will be served on time. We also have special rules for working in the dining room. Perhaps the most important lessons are about how to work with those who come to us for meals and food.
Each person asking to volunteer and attend the training session is asked to fill out a form. The form asks the interested party share some personal information. The information is about their previous work or volunteer experience that they feel will help them become a great volunteer at the Angel Food Kitchen. The work here is heavy work and difficult, so trainees will be asked to share general information about their health. The information will be reviewed and people who fit the criteria for volunteering will be contacted. Arrangements will be made for them to attend a training session before attempting the volunteer work o
We give preference to volunteers who speak English and Spanish (or English and another foreign language). We have so many people generous enough to volunteer their time and efforts we have found it necessary to offer training sessions and choose those volunteers best suited to work in the kitchen and dining room. We have a variety of work though that does not require training so we will try to find a task for everyone who wishes to volunteer.
Training Angels for Angel Food Kitchen
Overall Training Objectives
Review the Angel Food Kitchen’s Mission Statement
Learning how Angel Food Kitchen Works.
Learning with short lectures
Discussions with staff and with hands-on training
Learn how to handle situations that arise in the dining room with our neighbors who come for food
Training sessions for Angel Food Kitchen Volunteers
2 five-hour sessions once a month are offered on one weekend each month
The first full weekend, Saturday and Sunday, of each month, mornings, 9 a.m. to Noon
5 to 10 volunteers each month
Description of assessments
The assessment program includes assessing strength and physical capabilities of the volunteers, communication abilities with the visitors to the dining room, and knowledge of emergency measures.
Strategies and goals
Understanding and learning the Kitchen routine and packing food boxes
Food preparation
Fresh food organization
Inventory management
Dining room routines
Serving food
Working with guests
Dealing with emergencies
Short lectures, hands-on and role-playing
Resources
Meeting room, white board, and markers
Fruits, juices and tea for breaks
Notes for trainers
Step by step learning procedure, each break answer questions, stay later to answer questions.
Director and Board members
Saturday
Objectives: Understanding the kitchen and packing food boxes
9:00 - Training begins. Sharing and names. Introduction to the Angel Food Kitchen
9:15 – Learning about the kitchen and food
Floor plan of kitchen, what is kept in pantry, cooler and freezer
Kitchen task schedules and routines
What does kitchen staff do /what do volunteers do
Inventory, vegetable and fruit prep (cleaning and chopping), items prepared by the volunteers
Explain difficulties involved in certain tasks such as heavy lifting when storing vegetables in the cooler
10:15 - Break for snacks, questions taken during the break
10:30 - Tour of kitchen and facilities
Learning to clean and chop vegetables, store in cooler and clean up
How to pack boxes for families who come for boxes of food
11:15 - Teach where to find posted information like schedules, menus, and other instructions
Describe and list the routine task of volunteers explain that volunteers usually complete the same task each week and then are asked to complete other tasks that need to be finished or started.
Noon – session end
Sunday
Objectives Understanding how to work in the dining room and how to work with visitors to dining room
9 a.m. Review of Emergency Rescue Techniques
10:30 a.m. Break
10:45 - Working in the dining room
Serving food
Lesson in Communicating with people under financial stress (Hand outs)
Role Playing
Noon – End of Session
