National Volunteer Appreciation Month: A celebration of the individuals that make up Keep Austin Fed

No matter what season it is, our Keep Austin Fed volunteers are always ready to spring into food-rescue action and connect surplus wholesome food to those who need it most. April marks National Volunteer Appreciation Month, a time to recognize the dedicated people who donate their spare time to improve their communities. The 175 active volunteers that make up KAF play a significant role in our mission to reduce food waste and hunger in Austin.  

A recent study finds that 1.24 million pounds of food is wasted daily in the Austin Area. Without the help of our volunteers, that number would be much higher. Last year was KAF’s biggest year yet, as 230 volunteers connected 1,055,236 pounds of surplus food, or 879,363 meals, to 123 different partner organizations throughout the city. 

David Bradsby, a KAF volunteer who’s approaching 80 completed food rescues, says that these statistics are inspiring, and participating in frequent food rescues is something he takes pride in. 

“When you look at the numbers and the amount of food that’s being rescued, to be a part of that is just really important.”

David expresses that being the physical connection between surplus food from local food businesses and different recipient organizations is a rewarding part of volunteering.

“Keep Austin Fed just hits a number of things I wanted to do: address food insecurity,  address food waste, and get food to people who really need it. It’s just really nice to be able to go out and connect surplus food to those who need it,” David says. “For me, it really is fulfilling to do something to help other people out.”

This is a similar sentiment that another KAF volunteer, Hellen, shares as she recalls why she initially wanted to get involved with a food rescue organization. Hellen has a weekly responsibility of sorting through food that gets delivered to our walk-in cooler and nicely packing it into boxes to use for Monday’s food giveaways.

Hellen began volunteering with Save The Food back in 2021 because she believes more people in the community should be giving their time to help their neighbors in need. We are grateful for all of the Save The Food volunteers that joined the Keep Austin Fed team when the two organizations merged.

“Volunteering your time, it just makes you feel good knowing you’re helping other people,” Hellen says. “I saw there was so much need to volunteer. I wanted to be a part of people that actually help, so that the food will not be wasted and get it to people that are hungry. That's why I volunteer and I love it!”

Last year’s Save the Food merger with Keep Austin Fed added daily community food giveaways (a.k.a., “pop-up pantries”) to our programming. On Saturday mornings, Matthew Vantrease enthusiastically loads up his truck with boxes of sorted food and leads a food giveaway that takes place in East Austin. He says there are many reasons he chooses to volunteer his time with KAF, but, mainly, it’s connecting with the people he sees on a consistent basis.

“[My favorite part is] the people. Making sure everybody eats,” Matthew says. “Everybody deserves to have good food on their table, their bellies to be full and families to be fed. It’s awesome.”

Learn how you can be a KAF volunteer at keepaustinfed.org/volunteer