A volunteer at Feeding San Diego's produce pantry.

Find a Thanksgiving Volunteer Opportunity

Thanksgiving is a perfect time to volunteer at your local soup kitchen, food pantry, or food bank. Whether it’s assembling Thanksgiving meal boxes or serving food at a Thanksgiving dinner, there are a lot of opportunities to make the holiday special.

Start planning your Thanksgiving volunteering today!

How to volunteer

It's easy to volunteer at a food bank this Thanksgiving season! Here are three simple steps:

1
Find a food bank in your community

Use our search tool above to find a food bank in the Feeding America network.

2
Sign up for a volunteer shift

Most food banks list their available volunteer shifts on their website.

3
Show up and have fun

Thank you for helping to make Thanksgiving special for everyone.

Volunteer opportunities

Food bank volunteers sort and pack food, distribute meals, and provide other essential help during Thanksgiving. Here are just a few of the many ways you can help at a food bank:

Food sorting and packing

Volunteers sort and pack food donations for upcoming food distributions.

Shopping assistance

Assist families during their visit to the food bank or food pantry

Home delivery driver

Deliver meals to the elderly or people with disabilities or health conditions.

Cooking and meal prep

Cook and serve dinner at a soup kitchen or community meal

Other ways to help

A volunteer smiling and holding a navel orange.

Host a food drive

A virtual food drive is a great way to help Feeding America reach more of our neighbors during and after the holidays.

Sign up ›

A mom and her son in front of a school.

Feed a family

Your donations make it possible for millions of families to share meals and memories this Thanksgiving and beyond.

Give today ›

A box of bell peppers and potatoes.

Donate food

If you can’t volunteer this year but still want to help, consider donating some Thanksgiving foods to your local food bank.

Learn more ›