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Hundreds of pounds of canned foods and boxes of cereal moved down a conveyor belt to dozens of UCLA students, including Phoebe Lam, at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank on Saturday.
Lam, a third-year biochemistry student, picked up each item one-by-one, inspecting expiration dates and checking labels. She and 47 other UCLA student volunteers sorted through the donated food products at the food bank as a part of the Undergraduate Students Association Council Community Service Commission’s 11th annual Day of Service.
The Los Angeles Regional Food Bank was one of 12 different nonprofit organization sites, including animal shelters and organizations that aid homeless individuals, that about 460 students bused to the community service event. Participants learned about each site and its history and helped with volunteer work.
The food bank was established in 1973 and collects and sorts donations from corporations like Whole Foods and sends them to soup kitchens and shelters for distribution.
This year’s Day of Service participants volunteered at more organizations, allowing for smaller groups at the sites, said Vivian Lam, internal programs director for the Community Service Commission and a fourth-year psychobiology student. A majority of volunteering students were underclassmen.
Tasnim Dulla, a third-year chemistry student, spent the morning volunteering at Meeting Each Need with Dignity, commonly known as MEND, in Pacoima, Calif., a community in the San Fernando Valley.
MEND volunteers provide food and clothing, health care, job training and education to low income families in the San Fernando Valley. And on Saturday, Dulla sorted food and other items into boxes to distribute to the families the organization helps. Other UCLA volunteers handed out plants for the families to garden with.
After volunteering at MEND, Dulla said she enjoyed working with other students who were passionate about community service, and she plans to return to MEND on her own.
At the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, volunteers sang along to blasting pop music as they sorted out the donated food.
Mi So Kwak, a first-year music history student, took the expired food products off the conveyor belt and threw them into a large bin.
Kwak, who is blind, said it was difficult for her to sort the food products because she cannot see, but she was driven to continue working by her fellow volunteers and the energy around her.
“It could have been easier, but everyone was so helpful to me and to the cause,” she said.
The event culminated with a celebration in Bruin Plaza. The hundreds of volunteers poured out of the buses, congregating in the plaza to watch performances from UCLA students and a speech from some of the Day of Service staff thanking the volunteers for their time.
“The purpose of Day of Service is not just to get (students) out for three or four hours, but to inspire them to continue doing service,” said Omar Arce, the USAC community service commissioner and a fourth-year international development student. “Just to give them a taste of service and get them committed to continue helping.”
Correction: USAC Community Service Commissioner Omar Arce is a fourth-year international development student.