The next few months at Second Helpings will be busy as the organization works to expand the Hunger Relief program in response to the need for food remaining above pre-pandemic levels. Social distancing continues to be enforced at Second Helpings, but it does limit the number of volunteers [...]
June 8, 2021 To our Second Helpings Staff and Volunteers, On June 7th, Marion County issued a new public health order about the use of masks and other COVID-19 prevention measures. Much has changed in our community over recent months. Vaccines are now widely available and positivity rates in Marion County are currently 4.1% compared to 16.8% [...]
I am so happy to present to you our April Volunteer of the Month Beth Kinn! She is an amazing part of our Hunger Relief Kitchen volunteer team, and has served over 1,100 hours - 315 shifts. Beth is always willing to go the extra mile. We are so [...]
CEO Jennifer Vigran speaks to Second Helpings staff and volunteers on March 18, the one-year anniversary of our grab-and-go meals, a symbol of our COVID response. When schools in Marion County closed in March last year, the impact on Second Helpings was dramatic and instantaneous. While the [...]
Toni volunteering at the Second Helpings front desk I am so happy to announce our Volunteer of the Month is Toni Winstead! Toni has been a rock star, especially during COVID, never missing a beat, stepping in to go above and beyond to make sure our communities [...]
Throughout our organization’s history, the restaurant industry has been critical to Second Helpings’ impact in the community. In fact, that’s where we began. Our three founders were all Chefs, and created Second Helpings to address problems they identified in the industry and community – food waste, hunger, job training, [...]
Bags of bread and bagels and croissants? Check! Boxes of cookies and cakes and donuts? Check! Showing up like clockwork to sort on a Monday? CHECK! Here's Chris in one of our freezers, sorting food to match up our donated goods to share with partner agencies across central [...]
Volunteer Joan Forthofer is about as humble as they come. A reliable, enthusiastic, two-year veteran who works primarily as a meat chopper twice a week, Joan has little time for accolades, saying, “I'm not doing anything special – I’m just showing up and doing the best that I can.” [...]
It goes without saying that this year was unlike any other. The challenges and opportunities presented to Second Helpings in 2020 would have been unimaginable before they came our way. While the COVID-19 pandemic was certainly the story that defined this year for us all, we’d like to take [...]
A Second Helpings story problem: A hardworking tilt operator can typically produce two tilts per 4-hour shift that yield approximately 600 meals per batch. If he has volunteered for 29 single shifts and 29 double shifts in the Hunger Relief Kitchen, how many tilts has he prepared and how [...]