American Red Cross
ARCTAN
American Red Cross Team And Network of MIT

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Overview

We organize monthly trips to the Massachusetts Bay chapter of the Red Cross Food Pantry. The Massachusetts Bay chapter is the largest food pantry in the greater Boston area. It aims to provide food to families in need, who can come once a month to get a three day supply of food. In the past, MIT volunteers have beaten all the other volunteer groups in efficiency and speed. It is usually a lot of fun. However, be prepared to work, because we sometimes end up working non-stop for the entire time when lots of people come to the food pantry! Volunteers will help distribute food to clients, prepare bags for distribution administrative work with new clients, and other projects.

Dates

Check back in August for more info about our Fall 2008 trips to the food pantry!

What do we do?

The assigned tasks at the food pantry change every time, but there are several basic jobs possible:

1) Making food bags - Three kinds of "food bags" need to be prepared before and while people are coming into the pantry to get their food.
There are wet bags, which contain dairy products, meat/fish, and vegetables/fruit.
There are also dry bags (cereal, pasta, rice, etc.) and can bags. The content of the bags varries depending on what products are donated to the pantry.
2) Computers - People need to register with proper identification when they come in. The computers help ensure that people only come once a month.
3) Distributing food - Once people have registered, they receive a card with the number of people in their family on it. This card indicates how many bags of each kind they should get.
4) Any other task that needs to be accomplished.

The trips to the Food Pantry are on Saturdays from 7:30-12:15PM. We meet inside or outside Lobby 7 depending on the weather, and take the #1 Bus towards Boston at 7:45. We will pay for your bus fare there and back.

How do I get started?

Check your e-mail or the website for the next food pantry trip orcanized by ARCTAN.

Volunteering on your own

The Food Pantry is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 8AM-12PM. Contact Emily Walton (WaltonE@usa.redcross.org) and she will let you know when you can come help. The pantry is located at 1033 Mass Ave, in Roxbury. To get there, take the #1 bus towards Boston and get off at the Back Bay Medical Center. Keep walking along Mass Ave until you get to 1033 (about 10-15 minutes).

For more information, contact arctan-info@mit.edu.