Did you know that there are 6 million volunteers in Australia? OzHarvest is one of the many organisations around the country where volunteers play a vital role in our daily operations. Thanks to our wonderful network of volunteers we can keep on growing our capacity to rescue and deliver food and connect with our community. What better time to give our volunteers that extra bit of attention and love, than now during National Volunteer Week themed Give Happy Live Happy.

Within our local OzHarvest Adelaide team we currently have 175 registered volunteers and this number is always growing. Our volunteers are a diversely talented bunch of people who share a common passion for reducing food waste and giving back to the community.

Our team of volunteers contribute to every program that we deliver in and around Adelaide. You will see their faces and meet them at our programs including NEST (Nutrition Education and Sustenance Training) and Cooking for a Cause. You will see them rescuing food from the Adelaide Central Market, the Adelaide Showground Farmers Market and People’s Market on weekends. You will also see them supporting the collection and redistribution of food alongside our drivers each day of the week. If you are ever within our central office in Goodwood you may even meet volunteers who provide time to support with administration tasks, logistics or container washing ready for the next food rescue.

Our volunteers also generously provide time to engage with the community at events including Tasting Australia, Gorgeous Festival, Restaurant & Catering Awards, our annual Tree of Goodness at Adelaide Central Market, the yearly Volunteering SA & NT BBQ during National Volunteer Week and so much more…. They enthusiastically spread our OzHarvest messages of eliminating hunger and reducing food waste and inspire other people to get involved, donate time or money, or review their own food waste habits at home.

On average volunteers contribute about 310 hours a month to our organisation. In 2014 alone our Adelaide team of volunteers contributed an extraordinary 4600 hours of their time. We are so incredibly grateful for the work that all our wonderful volunteers do for us! Plus all the love, energy and passion they share. OzHarvest wouldn’t be the same without all these committed beautiful people supporting us.

Hayley Everuss, State Manager of OzHarvest South Australia expresses her gratitude toward volunteers: “Volunteers are at the heart of everything we do. From supporting our drivers with food rescue, to engaging with the public at a range of events throughout the year, to container washing and office support. We can’t express enough how grateful we are for so many people donating their time and love!”

Stories Well Told approached OzHarvest Adelaide recently to make a video about our work and our volunteers, to share during National Volunteer Week. For a glimpse into the life of volunteering with OzHarvest, have a look now and share it in your networks!

Would you like to learn more about the work our volunteers do, or are you interested in joining our yellow team? Please register your interest at www.ozharvest.org or shoot us an email directly at [email protected] We look forward to meeting you!

Banner image: Brenton Edwards