Volunteer Opportunities for Teens

There are many ways teens can volunteer at AFAC.

Service Requirements & Other Ways for Teens to Help

We are happy to help teens earn required service hours.  We can write letters and sign school forms. Teens, if you have a service requirement, please plan ahead!  There are very few last-minute or weekend opportunities.

Here are some ways teens can help:

Sponsor a food drive
Getting more food is AFAC's most urgent need. You can help.

Give empty grocery bags to be filled to your neighbors or teammates.  Click here for a sample flyer to attach to the bag.  Put a collection bin in your school or community organization.  Click here for more information on organizing a food drive.

Come to AFAC's Bagging Nights the first, second and fourth Wednesday of each month, 6:30-7:30. Please email us to let us know you'll be coming - volunteer4afac@afac.org.

On the first Wednesday, you'll put canned goods in brown bags.  On the second and fourth Wednesday, you'll be re-bagging bulk chicken - wear your old duds and we'll provide the aprons and gloves.

 

The bagging nights start promptly at 6:30 and only take one hour so teens shouldn't be dropped off for longer than an hour.

Sponsor a walk or run for AFAC
Two Yorktown students organized a 5K for AFAC and raised over $300.  Email Charlie Meng, our Acting Executive Director at charles.meng@afac.org, to learn more about organizing a similar event.

Hold a bake sale or yard sale and donate the proceeds to AFAC.

Start a garden at your school.  Go to the Plot Against Hunger website for more information.

Volunteer at big food drives or over spring break.
If you've been in our Summer Teen program, we'd like your help during spring break. We are also looking for strong volunteers on Sunday, April 25 for De-Canstruction and on Saturday, May 8 for Letter Carriers Food Drive. Email us at volunteer4afac@afac.org if you can help.

Summer Teen Program

From 9:30 to 12:30 each weekday during the summer, teens age 14 and older volunteer in AFAC's warehouse and office. Teens may sign up to volunteer 1 or 2 mornings per week. We are very flexible so you can fit your volunteering in around camps and vacations.

Working at AFAC is like helping in a small grocery store. We receive food deliveries. We weigh, sort, and shelve food. We also get produce and cold items that need to be stored. You can also help with our clients who come in once a week to receive supplemental groceries. We are currently serving about 120 families each day.

In the office, teens may be assigned tasks such as filing, data entry, stuffing envelopes, photocopying, website updating, even cleaning the storage cabinets. All these are things that make an organization run smoothly.

Please email Laura Jackson at laura.jackson@afac.org if you have questions about the Summer Teen program.

For more information, please contact one of our volunteer coordinators, Puwen Lee or Laura Jackson at volunteer4afac@afac.org or (703-845-8486).

AFAC's fax number is 703-845-8491.

Students from St. Stephens St. Agnes help bag sweet potatoes.