Houston Food Bank Urges Volunteers and Spanish Speakers to Join Phone Bank During Holiday Season
The Houston Food Bank is calling on volunteers to answer calls from food-eligible individuals seeking holiday meal assistance, with a special focus on recruiting Spanish speakers to join the effort.
Volunteers will play a crucial role in registering individuals by phone to receive holiday food boxes. While no prior experience is necessary, staff will provide a 15-minute training session before each shift to ensure volunteers are equipped to handle the task. The Houston Food Bank has identified an urgent need for Spanish-speaking volunteers to help address the growing demand.
Shifts are available from Monday, December 1 through Wednesday, December 3 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and can be signed up for on the ABC13 Share Your Holidays page. To volunteer, simply create a profile and look for red shifts. The Houston Food Bank website will also have a reservation map where individuals can follow the instructions to register.
Those in need of a food box can register online through the Houston Food Bank's website, but be aware that demand is expected to be extremely high during this time period, potentially leading to lengthy wait times.
In addition to volunteering, donations are also welcome and can be made online or by texting "SYH2025" to 71777. All donations will go towards supporting the Houston Food Bank's programs and services, which provide essential support to those in need during the holiday season.
The Houston Food Bank is calling on volunteers to answer calls from food-eligible individuals seeking holiday meal assistance, with a special focus on recruiting Spanish speakers to join the effort.
Volunteers will play a crucial role in registering individuals by phone to receive holiday food boxes. While no prior experience is necessary, staff will provide a 15-minute training session before each shift to ensure volunteers are equipped to handle the task. The Houston Food Bank has identified an urgent need for Spanish-speaking volunteers to help address the growing demand.
Shifts are available from Monday, December 1 through Wednesday, December 3 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and can be signed up for on the ABC13 Share Your Holidays page. To volunteer, simply create a profile and look for red shifts. The Houston Food Bank website will also have a reservation map where individuals can follow the instructions to register.
Those in need of a food box can register online through the Houston Food Bank's website, but be aware that demand is expected to be extremely high during this time period, potentially leading to lengthy wait times.
In addition to volunteering, donations are also welcome and can be made online or by texting "SYH2025" to 71777. All donations will go towards supporting the Houston Food Bank's programs and services, which provide essential support to those in need during the holiday season.
just thinking about all these people going hungry over the holidays is super sad 
, but what's even more amazing is that there are so many awesome folks like the ones volunteering for the Houston Food Bank who want to help 
! and hey, getting Spanish speakers involved is a great move - language barriers can be tough to overcome, so it's awesome they're making an effort to include everyone 
! what I'm curious about though is how we can make sure these volunteers don't get overwhelmed with the calls? like, I get that people need help during holidays but still, 10 am to 7 pm is a pretty big time slot 
.
... people in houston are struggling to make ends meet and the food bank is like the only one helping out 
... i wish more ppl could volunteer their time to help register people for these food boxes, it's not that hard just 2 hours a day can make a big difference 
... and spanish speakers are needed esp since that's like half the population in houston 
... let's all do our part and support this great cause!
? like, it's not exactly my idea of a fun way to spend the holidays, but hey, if you're into that sorta thing... 
I mean, I guess it's great that the Houston Food Bank is trying to reach out to spanish-speaking folks who might need some extra help during this time of year. 
Those 15-minute training sessions sound super helpful tho 
, probably more help than most ppl would give themselves 
.
and during the holiday season, the demand for food assistance can increase by up to 50%! 
so yeah, volunteering is super important! 
also, did u know that food insecurity affects 1 in 8 households in harris county? 
we gotta come together as a community to help each other out. 
like i know it sounds super cool but the houston food bank needs us!!! we gotta help out people who r struggling to get food esp during holidays 
they need our skills and our time to answer those phone calls so someone can get some food 
. no prior exp needed lol just 15 min training and u r good to go! 
shift times are from dec 1-3 and can b signed up on abc13 page 
let's do this for the houston food bank 
. This phone bank initiative might seem small, but it's actually a microcosm of the bigger issues we face.
. We can't just rely on volunteer efforts; we need to create a safety net that's more inclusive and effective. This holiday season should be a call to action for our leaders to prioritize policy over politics 
.
. I'm not exactly sure how many people are gonna be affected, but if we all chip in, maybe we can get some of these folks the food they need. And hey, even just 15 minutes of your time could make a big impact. Don't gotta be fluent in Spanish to help out either - just be willing to listen and help with the registration process.
. Anyway, I was thinking of trying out this new Korean-style fried chicken place that just opened up downtown... has anyone been there? 
.
This is a classic case of the powers that be trying to get people to sit at home while the ones who are struggling the most are left out in the cold 
. They're relying on volunteers, but only on Spanish speakers? What about everyone else? Are they just gonna leave all those other languages out of it? And don't even get me started on the fact that it's a phone bank... what if someone calls and needs more than just food? Maybe they need help with rent or bills 
. I mean, I'm happy to volunteer, but let's not pretend like this is a genuine attempt at helping people when really it's just a ploy to get people to stay indoors while the system keeps on rolling 
I mean, can't we just use robots or something to help with all these calls? I guess that's not a bad idea though... 
My aunt used to volunteer at the food bank and said it was always super busy during holidays. Anyway, let's get those phones ringing and make a difference in our community 
. anyone got time to spare over the holidays?
, to join their phone bank effort. It's a great way for us to make a difference in our community and provide support to those who need it most 
! Let's all lend a hand and spread some holiday cheer