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Celebrating Our 2025 Volunteer Award Lunch Winners
Each year, we proudly celebrate the incredible volunteers who power our mission at Second Harvest Food Bank — and at our 2025 Volunteer Award Luncheon, we honored some of the most inspiring among them; meet this year’s outstanding award winners. Read More -
Five Expert Tips on Storing Vegetables
Did you know storing vegetables properly can extend their shelf life and help you save money? Read More -
Grand Opening of Golden West College’s New Permanent Pantry Location – The Stand
On September 19, one of our valued college pantry partners, Golden West College hosted the grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony for the new location of its Basic Needs Center, The Stand. Read More -
Helping Orange County’s Seniors: The Hidden Hunger Crisis Among OC’s Aging Population
As part of Hunger Action Month, for Senior Hunger Awareness Week (September 16-20), Second Harvest CEO Claudia Bonilla Keller sat down with partner organization Meals on Wheels OC’s President and CEO Holly Hagler. Read More -
Celebrating 10 Years of Mobile School Pantries
September marks a significant milestone—10 years since the generosity of donors led to the opening of the first Mobile School Pantry. What began in 2014 with just 12 pantries has expanded to 76 pantries across 14 cities in Orange County. Read More -
Second Harvest Participates in D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event
On August 11, Disney fans and VoluntEARS assembled 7,500 snack packs for families in need in Orange County. These will be distributed through Second Harvest's Partner Network, thanks to the generous support of Disney VoluntEARS! Read More -
Second Harvest Shining Bright in OC with Recent Awards
In June 2024, Second Harvest was the recipient of three different awards for our work in the Orange County community. Read More -
Park-It Market – An Innovative Solution to Senior Food Insecurity
Second Harvest is providing a solution to the ever-present existence of senior food insecurity by rolling right up to the doorstep at senior communities throughout Orange County to provide free, nutritious food through a pair of walk-up, refrigerated “Park-It Markets” (PIMs) housed in trailers that allows residents to socialize and mingle as they select the products of their choice. Read More -
Good Day LA, Second Harvest and Knife Pleat Partner Up on a Farm-To-Table Recipe
Michelin-star chef Tony Esnault of Knife Pleat was recently featured on Good Day LA cooking a delicious winter soup at Harvest Solutions Farm. Read More
Celebrating Our 2025 Volunteer Award Lunch Winners
2025 Volunteer Awards Winners (& Our Volunteer Staff)
At Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County, our volunteers are the heart of everything we do. From sorting food at the Distribution Center to harvesting fresh produce at Harvest Solutions Farm (a partnership with the University of California South Coast Research & Extension Center and Solutions for Urban Agriculture) and Founders Farm, their dedication fuels our mission to nourish every community member in need in Orange County, every day.
The 70s-themed 2025 Volunteer Appreciation Lunch was a joyful moment to gather as a community and celebrate individuals, groups and companies who’ve gone above and beyond in service. Their impact reaches across Orange County — and their stories inspire us all.
We’re proud to introduce the 2025 VAL Award Winners:
🚛 Distribution Center
Recognizing outstanding individuals and groups whose service at our Distribution Center exemplifies leadership, inspiration, and dedication to community health.
Sandy Cowles – Champion of Change Award
Disney VoluntEARS – Joe C. Schoeningh Community Service Award
Glen Gilkey – Kris Thomsen Memorial Award
Mai Nguyen – The Rising Star Award
Santa Margarita Catholic High School – Feeding the Future Award
🌱 Harvest Solutions Farm
Recognizing volunteers whose hard work, heart, and dedication help grow provide fresh, nutritious food for our community
Alyssa Ing – Kawamura Achievement Award
Irvine Korean Parents Association & Volunteer Committee – Feeding the Future Award
Amy Kagel – Friendly Farmer Award
Jeanette Mayer – The Golden “BroccStar” Award
Patrick Redmond – The Cream of the Crop Award
Brent Seaton – The Muddy Boot Award
These winners represent just a fraction of the thousands of volunteers who power Second Harvest each year — and each one brings something unique and beautiful to our mission.
To every volunteer who gives their time, energy, and heart – we couldn’t do it without you!
Thank you!
Jill Wilson decided to volunteer with Second Harvest in 2008 when she was in between jobs and looking for a way to apply her talents that could benefit the community. She arrived one day at Second Harvest’s former distribution center in Orange, ready to serve, and felt immediately connected to the mission.
Like Jill and Ian, other friends of the food bank may be looking for ways to connect meaningfully with Second Harvest to help those experiencing hunger in Orange County for years to come. One simple way to make a significant impact, while achieving peace of mind, is by creating a will or revocable living trust with our partner, FreeWill.
March is National Nutrition Month, an annual awareness campaign that encourages us to learn about nutrition, develop healthy eating habits and discover the fun of being physically active. At Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County, we strive to provide everyone in Orange County with the nutrition they need to grow and excel in life.
Last spring, here at Second Harvest we completely revamped our focus to proactively purchase fresh nutrition for those in need, ensuring a steady pipeline of protein, dairy, eggs, fruits and vegetables to our approximately 300 partner and program sites. As a next step, we recently unveiled our new, 6,200-square-foot cold storage facility and two additional cold docks that establish a “cold chain” at our distribution center in Irvine. This gives us a total of 14,550 square feet of cold storage, which greatly enhances our ability to source and distribute more nutritious food.
Second Harvest continues to fight increasing food insecurity through our Pop-Up Drive Thru food distributions with the help of many amazing volunteers and it is no surprise that many of them are mothers. Jacqueline is one such volunteer and I wanted to learn more of her story.
here to volunteer representing other mothers…to give back to the community, to be a role model to my children. As a mother, as a woman, as a friend, as a wife…you have so many hats you have to put on and one of them is giving. When I go home my daughter asks me, “Mom what did you do today?” And I say, “I got to give back to people, people that really don’t have as much as we do.” Hopefully she sees me doing this and then as she gets older, she’ll want to give back just the same way.”
Pantry. Their style traditionally has always been very welcoming and focused on building relationships with those they serve. They would put out coffee and pastries and spend time talking with the families who would come early just to socialize.
One of Nancy’s key volunteers, Mary Kaye, also shared insights. Mary Kaye is an emergency room doctor who has been spending much of her spare time serving at the Saint Timothy pantry. She began volunteering pre-COVID by taking blood pressures on pantry days and translating for Spanish-speaking clients.. All the changes have her missing conversations and connecting with the families they serve.
can take your blood pressure soon,” and encouraging them.”
Whatever the situation that keeps students on campus and struggling to feed themselves, the Fresh Basic Needs Hub at UCI remains open to serve them, supported by food from Second Harvest. Student hunger is a serious challenge, made even worse by the pandemic, but Fresh, as it’s called, has the mission to provide for the basic needs of UCI students, allowing them to focus on academics.
Last week did not feel hopeful. Seeing the injustice of the past few days makes me cringe. It causes me to grieve when I see people treated unfairly or worse. But I’m choosing to move forward with hope. How can I have hope this week? Because I know Andrea and I see how she treats people who sometimes feel trapped. The team at Fresh, and all the other college pantries in Orange County serve as a lifeline for their students, providing for basic needs and offering a dignified experience for everyone who comes to them for help. Their service is a beacon of hope in the darkness.
redirected those emotions toward survival and humility. While it was a very difficult decision, Stephen and Kristina decided that in order to make it through this crisis, they would need to receive assistance the first time in their lives. This is what it means to be newly vulnerable.