It’s been a time of massive change at the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia, which recently moved into a new $15 million warehouse and headquarters, comprising 63,000 square feet dedicated to addressing food insecurity across 15 Northeast Georgia counties.
One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is the Food Bank’s reliance on the help of volunteers to sort and pack a steady stream of donated food before it goes to local partner agencies for distribution to children, families and others experiencing food insecurity.
“We consider the Volunteer Center the heartbeat of the organization for good reason,” says Erin Barger, the Food Bank’s chief executive officer. “Last year, volunteers provided nearly 12,000 hours to support our mission of connecting neighbors with nourishing food.” Those volunteer service hours were the equivalent of nearly six full-time employees – critical tangible support, Barger notes, with the bonus of bringing “joy, enthusiasm, and passion to this work which elevates the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia for everyone.”

At the new facility, which opened in mid-July, that support and its benefits can increase exponentially. In the former facility, the volunteer center could accommodate just 20 volunteers at any one time. In the new Food Bank of Northeast Georgia, located directly across Newton Bridge Road from the former location, as many as 75 volunteers can be at work at any given time. According to Barger, that’s the equivalent of 19 full-time staff members.
For years, the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia has been a popular option for seniors interested in volunteering their time. According to a small group of senior volunteers gathered recently at the facility, the Food Bank offers flexibility in time commitments, the ability to quickly see tangible results of their work, and the knowledge that they’re making a real difference in addressing local food insecurity.
From the Food Bank’s perspective, Barger said, “We love the experience and wisdom that seasoned volunteers bring to the Food Bank. Some of our volunteers have incredible expertise in the food industry, or they have built skills and ingenuity in other fields that find unique application with us.”
Older volunteers, Barger added, are “perfectly positioned to help us realize our passion for applying curiosity and inquiry to everything we do to make it better.”
Easy to schedule
Among the regular senior volunteers at the Food Bank is 67-year-old Leo Urrutia, who retired two years ago after more than 40 years in pharmaceutical sales. Even before he found the volunteer opportunity at the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia, Urrutia knew he wanted to work to help address food insecurity.
“So I just started looking up food banks, and Northeast Georgia came up,” he said.
One thing that Urrutia and other senior volunteers like about volunteering at the Food Bank is that it is easy to fit into their schedules — and that on any single day of volunteering, they won’t be at the facility for more than 90 minutes. For Urrutia, the reward of his volunteer time – he’s currently scheduled for one shift on Tuesdays — is knowing that shortly after he’s helped pack bags or boxes of food “there’s going to be somebody who’s going to look into that bag … or open this box, and just say, ‘I’ve got food. This is one thing I don’t have to worry about.”
Knowing that he’s helped get food to people who need it also carries another reward for Urrutia.
“I sleep better at night,” he said.
Among the people with whom Urrutia’s volunteer schedule often intertwines are David Dantzler and his wife, Anne, who recently moved to Athens from Atlanta. Anne, 66, and David, 70, were deliberate in their search for local volunteer opportunities, doing lots of research before deciding to give their time to the Food Bank.
“We wanted to get involved in the community and find something that was worthwhile and making a difference,” Anne said. Since then, she and her husband have fully embraced the Food Bank’s mission.
“We feel good about the work that’s done here, and really enjoy the staff and the other volunteers,” she said.
For David Dantzler, volunteering at the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia has been a perfect fit for what he wanted from a community service opportunity.
“I practiced law for 40 years,” he said. “My cases were big and took a long time to resolve. As I was looking forward to retirement, I wanted to find a place to plug in where I could go, work, and see the product of my labor. … This fits that bill perfectly.”
Another thing that attracted Dantzler to the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia is the laser focus of its mission.
“The one thing in life that is absolutely essential is food. It’s even more essential than shelter,” he said. “And here, the mission is focused. They’re trying to solve one issue in 15 counties. We’re not trying to feed the entire world out of this facility.”
Joining Urrutia and the Dantzlers as frequent partners for volunteer hours at the Food Bank is 60-year-old Karen Higginbotham, a retired educator. During her time in the classroom, Higginbotham saw firsthand the impact of food insecurity on young people. Fortunately, she also saw firsthand the impact of Food Bank’s programs in getting food to her students and their families.
“Once I had the time to be able to volunteer, I appreciated and was honored to be able to give back in this way, because I know the impact it can have,” Higginbotham said.
Caring a whole awful lot
Like other spaces in the Food Bank’s new building, the Volunteer Center – a large, high-ceilinged space outfitted with tables for sorting food donated from local grocery stores, from state and federal food programs, and from the Food Bank’s own purchasing – is decorated with an inspirational quote. The quotes are intended to inspire Food Bank staff and volunteers as they pursue their work.
Taken from the Dr. Seuss book “The Lorax,” the quote in the Volunteer Center reads, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better, it’s not.”
“It kind of helps you remember why we’re doing this,” Anne Dantzler said.
For Urrutia, Higginbotham and the Dantzlers, caring “a whole awful lot” is now integrated into their lifestyle.
“I’ve got it slotted in my schedule,” said Urrutia. “This is just like playing golf on Wednesday. This is Food Bank Tuesday.”
“My wife knows not to plan anything for us during these hours,” he said. “I look forward to this.”
The Dantzlers routinely volunteer for one, or sometimes two, days each week. “If we have a conflict, and we can’t work our regular days, we’ll say, ‘OK, what else is open, and we pick another shift,” Anne explained.
Working under the guidance of Anna Wilson, lead volunteer coordinator at the Food Bank, volunteers work to bring order out of what can sometimes be the chaotic way in which donations come into the Volunteer Center. For the most part, volunteers are separating the various donations, checking for expiration dates, accidentally opened packages, or other problems. One thing that can be particularly tricky is checking donated fruits and vegetables to be sure they aren’t rotted or otherwise spoiled.
“We get here, and the food is just chaotically stored, because it was brought on a truck the night before or whatever, and when we leave, we’ve kind of brought order to it, and organized it, and it goes right … out to partner agencies,” David Dantzler explained.
“It may not sound like a lot,” Urrutia said, “but it really is, because we bring order to a bin of food that would otherwise be thrown in the dumpster.”
“It’s sitting here,” Anne Dantzler added, “but until we sort through it, it can’t go there.”
Barger encourages anyone interested in volunteering at the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia not to hesitate to explore that possibility. For information on how to volunteer, go online to https://foodbanknega.org/volunteers/.
“We can only imagine the good things in store as we see new and longtime volunteers come together with a common vision,” Barger said. “If you are even a little bit curious, please come see us! At the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia, belonging is both aspirational and a concrete reality — we welcome you with open arms.”
Jim Thompson is a freelance journalist living in Athens. He worked for more than 30 years as a newspaper reporter and editor at publications in Georgia and Florida before embarking on his freelance career.