Brian, Greater Vancouver Food Bank Volunteer

During this unprecedented phase in our lives, many of us are inspired to fill our time in quarantine in many ways. Some will explore new hobbies such as baking banana bread or crocheting blankets to fill up their time, while others volunteer their time to support their communities – which was what Brian chose to do. 

Brian started volunteering at the Greater Vancouver Food Bank in May 2020. “I wanted to give back to the community because when you’re sitting alone in quarantine, you’ve got nothing to do, why not work at the Food Bank and have a purpose and serve the community?” 

As a second-year UBC student, Brian has been helping as a food distribution volunteer at the Burnaby distribution site. This front-line volunteer role is a great opportunity to engage with our clients directly. When asked what surprised him the most about volunteering in this role, Brian expressed his shock at how much he could impact the community through his work at the Food Bank. From hearing some of the client’s stories to seeing their smiles, these small interactions made his volunteering experience that much more meaningful. 

“My favourite moments are when I’m distributing a certain type of food and the client’s eyes brighten up. They’ll say, ‘oh, I love tomatoes!’ or ‘I love broccoli!’ and that brings so much joy to my heart.” 

Brian was so happy with his experience at the Food Bank that he even went that extra step and referred his cousin to start volunteering. “There’s a great atmosphere here,” Brian says, “everyone is so friendly and has the same purpose of giving back.”  

We could not deliver on our mission to provide healthy food to those in need without our hardworking and generous volunteers. In this last year alone, our volunteers dedicated 80,000 hours to help us in distribution, warehouse, and the office! Thank you so much for your hard work, everyone!  

If you would like to learn more about volunteering with the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, please visit: https://foodbank.bc.ca/volunteer/