WAYS TO GIVE
Give Now
Help us serve over 400,000 food insecure neighbors in need in Orange County each month.
Give Monthly
Pledge weekly, monthly or yearly and become a CommUNITY Circle member to help us ensure that families, children and seniors don’t go without the food they need.
Give Food*
In addition to financial gifts, we and our partner network welcome gifts of food from individuals, food drives and food manufacturers.
OTHER WAYS TO GIVE
There are many more ways to help Second Harvest ensure all are well fed in OC.
For any questions about giving to Second Harvest Food Bank, please contact us at 949-653-2900 or give@feedoc.org.
GIVING BY CHECK
If you would like to make a donation by check, please make it payable to Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County and mail it to:
Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County
Attn: Development Department
8014 Marine Way
Irvine, CA 92618
FOR DONORS WHO SENT US GIFT(S) BY CHECK:
We will provide an Annual Statement that lists your charitable gift(s) from the prior year for your records by the end of February. If you would like a gift receipt before then, please email us at give@feedoc.org and we would be happy to provide one.
COMPANY/CORPORATE GIVING
Second Harvest would love to collaborate with your corporate team! For more information, click here. Contact Megan Hunker, Donor Relations Manager by phone 949-208-3187 or email Megan@feedoc.org with any questions.
DONATE CRYPTOCURRENCY
Second Harvest now accepts crypto! Donating cryptocurrency is a non-taxable event, meaning you do not owe capital gains tax on the appreciated amount and can deduct it on your taxes. This makes Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency donations one of the most tax-efficient ways to support Second Harvest.
To donate cryptocurrency now, click here.
LEGACY GIVING
You can make a lasting impact for years to come on the lives of local food-insecure children, families and seniors by including Second Harvest in your will.
This free estate planning tool makes it simple to get started. You can write a legal will or trust at no personal cost and include the necessary language to ensure all are well fed in Orange County for years to come.
If you’ve already created a gift in your will or trust, please let us know by filling out this form!
You may also name Second Harvest as a beneficiary of a retirement or savings account, life insurance policy or charitable trust.
Click here for more detailed information or contact Christine Montevideo, Senior Development Manager:
Call 949-208-3150 or email christine@feedoc.org.
DONATE STOCKS, SECURITIES & MUTUAL FUNDS
Donations of stock can be made by utilizing our free online resource or by contacting your broker and requesting that the desired number of shares be transferred electronically to Second Harvest’s account.
Our online stock giving resource makes it simple to get started. You can learn more about your potential tax savings, access our Depository Trust Company (DTC) information and complete the necessary paperwork online to support Second Harvest and our hunger relief efforts with a gift of stock. Learn more and access our transfer information here.
Watch this quick video to learn more about The benefits of giving stock.
IRA ROLLOVER
On December 18, 2015, the IRA Charitable Rollover was passed by Congress and signed by the President, making it a permanent law.
The bill, known as the PATH Act, is retroactive to December 31, 2014. It allows taxpayers aged 70 1/2 or older to donate up to $100,000 directly from their Individual Retirement Account to a charity without treating the distribution as taxable income.
This online resource makes it easy to learn more about your potential savings, fill out the necessary paperwork and complete your IRA gift to ensure all are well fed in Orange County.
HONORARY GIFTS
Honorary gifts are a great way pay tribute to those you love. Your donation will ensure that children won’t go to bed hungry and seniors won’t have to choose between food and medication.
You can make a gift that gives back in the name of a loved one. Honorary gifts celebrate birthdays, anniversaries or the memory of loved ones. Please contact Christine Montevideo, Senior Development Manager: Call 949-208-3150 or email christine@feedoc.org to find out more.
WORKPLACE GIVING
You can help end hunger through your company’s workplace giving program and if your company has a matching gift program, you can double your impact.
Check with your Human Resources Department to see if your company offers a matching gift program. Just mail or fax your company form to:
Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County
Attn: Development Department
8014 Marine Way
Irvine, CA 92618
Fax 949.653.0700
For more information on how to donate through workplace giving, click here.
IN-KIND DONATIONS
Second Harvest welcomes donations of equipment or services that will help us feed the hungry. There are many opportunities to give your talents as a professional or to donate gently-used equipment such as refrigerated trucks. For a current list of opportunities, please email InKind@feedoc.org
RETAILER REWARDS PROGRAMS
Donate to Second Harvest Food Bank just by doing your regular shopping! Many retailers have programs that help you give back to your favorite nonprofit. Click on the links below for information on how to do it.
Food Drives
TRADITIONAL FOOD DRIVES
Many of our partners and pantries will accept your individual food donations or those from food drives. Please click here to find a location near you. Please note that Second Harvest no longer accepts these donations directly so that we can focus on providing the highest levels of food nutrition and quality for those we serve, as well as processing bulk pallet and truckloads of food from local and national commercial manufacturers and distributors that meet the current high volume of need.
VIRTUAL FOOD DRIVES
Virtual Food Drives are one of the best ways you or your company can make a difference in this challenging time. Join us in our mission to provide food and nutritional security for all in OC! Click here to read more, or set up your individual or corporate Virtual Food Drive here.
FOOD INDUSTRY DONATIONS
Donated food from manufacturers, retailers, distributors, farmers, packers and others helps us feed hundreds of thousands of people every month. Click here to learn more.
VOLUNTEER
Thank you for your interest in volunteering with Second Harvest Food Bank! We are grateful to have a tremendous community working alongside us to ensure all are well fed in Orange County. On behalf of our team here at Second Harvest as well as those we serve, thank you!
Second Harvest encourages all to volunteer who meet age requirements. We currently offer volunteer opportunities for ages 7 and older with a chaperone at Harvest Solutions Farm and ages 13 and older with a chaperone in our Distribution Center.
Please continue scrolling for details about our volunteer program and to find an opportunity that works best for you.
We appreciate your consideration of donating your time to help us fulfill our mission. If you or your team would like to support Second Harvest even further with a cash donation, please click HERE.
INDIVIDUAL VOLUNTEERS
Individual volunteers must be 18 years of age or older to volunteer at Second Harvest. Each adult participant must register for the volunteer shift (adding members to your party is for youth volunteers only). Please continue scrolling for details about our volunteer program and to find an opportunity that works best for you.
MINOR VOLUNTEERS
Current age requirements are as follows:
- Ages 7 and older with chaperone*: Come volunteer at Harvest Solutions Farm.
- Ages 13 and older with chaperone*: Come volunteer at Harvest Solutions Farm or in our Distribution Center.
*Chaperone Requirements: Chaperones must be 21 or older and must participate for the entire event. For youth groups, please check the individual event details on the registration page for the chaperone ratio requirements.
MINOR VOLUNTEER REGISTRATION:
- To register a minor, please have the adult chaperone register online for the desired shift. Minor volunteers do not need to register themselves.
- Once the chaperone is registered, please complete the minor volunteer registration form linked below.
GROUP VOLUNTEER RESERVATIONS
Group volunteer opportunities are based on availability per shift at the time of the request. All volunteer opportunities are filled on a first come, first served basis. Group volunteer requests must be for regularly-scheduled volunteer shifts in either our Distribution Center or at Harvest Solutions Farm.
Prior to submitting your group volunteer reservation request, please check the volunteer shift calendar on VolunteerHub to ensure enough volunteer spots are available to accommodate your entire group.
COMMUNITY SERVICE
COURT-ORDERED COMMUNITY SERVICE INDIVIDUALS
All individuals requiring court-ordered community service hours must be referred through OneOC. For more information, please visit OneOC’s Website.
SCHOOL SERVICE HOURS
We verify volunteer hours on the day of service ONLY. If you require written volunteer hour verification for high school or college community service hours, please bring the necessary forms with you so our volunteer team can sign off on your hours the day of your volunteer shift. We are unable to make exceptions.
DISTRIBUTION CENTER
Come volunteer with us at our Distribution Center in Irvine! Participants help us with a variety of projects, including processing nutritious fruits and vegetables to be distributed to our community partner network.
Our Distribution Center currently welcomes volunteers ages 13 and older with an adult chaperone.
Shifts are Monday through Friday, with both a morning (8:30 – 11:30 am) and afternoon (12:30 – 3:30 pm) shift. Tuesdays and Fridays there are no afternoon shifts.
Click here for an inside look at a Distribution Center volunteer shift.
HARVEST SOLUTIONS FARM
Join us as we plant, harvest, weed and maintain the fields of Harvest Solutions Farm, located just down the road from our food bank in Irvine, CA. This is an outdoor opportunity.
Harvest Solutions Farm currently welcomes volunteers ages 7 and older with an adult chaperone.
Shifts are Wednesday through Saturday mornings, (7:30 – 11:30 am). Tuesday shifts are evenings from (4:00 – 6:00 pm).
Harvest Solutions Farm can accommodate groups of up to 70 people.
Click here to experience the launch and vision of Harvest Solutions Farm.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Second Harvest Food Bank offers select volunteer opportunities throughout the year for food bank and community events.
Please click the button below to view and register for currently-scheduled special event volunteer opportunities.
COMMUNITY FOOD DISTRIBUTION
Second Harvest provides food to those in need through our amazing network of more than 300 Community Partners. When partner sites need additional volunteer support, we assist by making those opportunities available here.
For questions about volunteering,
please contact our Volunteer Team at
volunteer@feedoc.org.
VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTERS
Here are our monthly volunteer newsletters where you’ll find the latest news about volunteerism, including volunteer opportunities, department updates, spotlights and more.
Newsletters
ADVOCATE FOR CHANGE
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
AT SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK
Food banks play a critical role in addressing food insecurity, but we can’t do it alone.
Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County strategically engages in year-round advocacy work by raising awareness of hunger issues and mobilizing support at every level of government for policy solutions that address public nutrition and other anti-poverty programs.
We can’t achieve our vision of an Orange County with food and nutritional security for all without advocating for change in the systems and structures that created the hunger crisis in the first place. We work with both our coalition and community partners, including neighbors with lived experience of hunger, to educate the public and policymakers about food insecurity. We encourage them (and you!) to partner with us in our mission to provide dignified, equitable and consistent access to nutritious food for all.
ADVOCACY WORKS
Permanent
Summer Meals
Child nutrition provisions taken in the 2022 omnibus spending bill established a permanent Summer EBT program, helping to ensure that our nation’s children have access to nutritious meals when schools, and their cafeterias, are closed for the summer.
Free School
Meals for All
We joined our advocacy partners to help pass a first-in-the-nation Universal School Meals Program to provide free breakfast and lunch to all K-12 public school students in California.
Funding
for Food
Our advocacy efforts helped secure $120M in funding for the CalFood program in the 2022 California state budget, enabling food banks to purchase California-produced foods to meet their communities’ diverse food needs.
JOIN US AND TAKE ACTION
SECOND HARVEST ENGAGEMENT NETWORK (SHEN)
Want to learn more about food insecurity issues and how you can advocate on behalf of the Food Bank? Sign up to be a part of our Engagement Network!
When you sign up, you will be emailed a link to our introductory advocacy training, as well as receive our monthly Government Relations Update via email. You will also receive Engagement Alerts for specific time sensitive engagement activities throughout the year.
COMMUNITY VOICES ACADEMY
Are you ready to take your advocacy involvement to the next level? Get training on how to integrate the voices in our community and advocate for sustainable change in our food systems.
COMMUNITY CHAMPIONS
Our Community Champions are our standing advocate cohort comprised of graduates of the Community Voices Academy. Community Champions are called upon to regularly speak about food and nutritional insecurity issues.
FOOD FELLOWS
Are you a student in Orange County and would like to advocate for hunger issues? Find out ways you can get your school involved, on and off campus.
COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS
LISTENING SESSIONS FOR OUR PARTNERS AND NEIGHBORS WITH LIVED EXPERIENCE
Do you know someone with lived experience of food insecurity? Do you have expertise on hunger issues here in Orange County? We want to hear from you!
Reach out to participate in one of our Community Conversations and help advocate for our neighbors facing food insecurity.
LEARN MORE
GOVERMENT RELATIONS UPDATES
- July Government Relations Update California Budget Season Recap & Community Conversations Launch
- June Government Relations Update Second Harvest on the Road & Engagement Program Launch
- May Government Relations Update Debt Ceiling Negotiations & Assemblymember Petrie-Norris Volunteer Event Recap
- April Government Relations Update End of CalFresh Emergency Allotments & OCSSA Resource Fair Event Recap
PARTNERS IN ADVOCACY
We can’t do it alone and extend our thanks to our elected officials, community advocates, partners & coalitions:
Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County is a nonpartisan organization and does not endorse or oppose political candidates running for office.
For more information, contact
Malia Cary
Government & Public Affairs Manager
malia@feedoc.org
949.208.3152
FOOD INDUSTRY
DONATIONS
Second Harvest’s Food Sourcing Department serves the needs of donors, community partners and the food insecure in Orange County. Whether you’re a manufacturer, distributor, retailer, restaurant, hotel or caterer, we have a program that will transfer unwanted food directly to those in need so no food is wasted. It’s a true win-win. Contact us here and a Food Sourcing Team member will reply.
With food safety being our #1 priority, Second Harvest staff and community partners are trained in the inspection and handling of food for safe consumption and follow strict guidelines for record keeping, food handling and distribution. In addition, donors are protected from liability by the Good Samaritan Law.
FOOD MANUFACTURERS
Donate food that’s safe for consumption but has been discontinued, approaching its best-by date, overstocked, out-of-spec, a test or promotional product or needs to be removed for inventory.
Some of our generous donors include: Legacy Farms, Frieda’s Specialty Produce, Flowers Baking Company, OC Produce, Veg-Land, Kellogg Company, Heritage Foods, Schreiber Foods, Danone White Wave, General Mills and more.
GROCERY STORES
We give you a safe and efficient way to donate:
- Meat
- Dairy
- Deli
- Produce
- Bakery
- Frozen items
- Shelf-stable items
- Non-food health and beauty items
We make scheduled pickups in temperature-controlled trucks and deliver your donations directly to community partners, ensuring peak freshness.
Our current grocery store partners include Walmart, Sam’s Club, Kroger (Ralphs, Food 4 Less), Albertsons/Vons/Pavilions, Target, Gelson’s, select Trader Joe’s locations, Aldi, Amazon Fresh, Costco Wholesale, Smart & Final, 99 Ranch, Grocery Outlet and Sprouts.
FOOD VENDORS
Since many food categories are not donated in sufficient quantities, we must purchase them in bulk. If you’d like to bid on these opportunities, please contact us at foodsourcingdepartment@feedoc.org.
OTHER FOOD DONATIONS
EVENTS
If you have an event with leftover food, with advanced notice we can help get it to those in need. To learn more please contact us at foodsourcingdepartment@feedoc.org.
RESTAURANTS & FOOD SERVICE RESCUE PROGRAM
We can deliver your unsold prepared and perishable food or event leftovers directly to our smaller community partners. We provide donation records for your tax purposes.
Our current restaurant partners include Disneyland and Orange County School Districts.
For more information, please contact us at foodsourcingdepartment@feedoc.org.
SPECIAL THANKS
Thank You From the Bottom of Our Hearts!
Every day thousands of men, women and children look to Second Harvest to provide food for their next meal. Without your donations, we’d have to turn them away. We are so grateful for your generosity as we work to ensure all in Orange County are well fed.
Thank You to Our Corporate Partners (FY2022)
Thank You to Our Annual Donors (FY2022)
Thank You to Our Corporate Food Donors (FY2022)
EVENTS
For questions about our events, please contact specialevents@feedoc.org.
TUESDAY, NOV. 21, 2023 • 11:45 A.M.
“NO LUNCH” LUNCH
Our signature annual event where we come together as a community to reflect on our work from the previous year, as well as look ahead to the year before us.
Click HERE for full details and to RSVP.
JUNE 1-30, 2024
FOOD FROM THE BAR
2024 campaign details coming soon. Click HERE to see 2023 results.
OCTOBER 2024
HARVESTERS 32ND ANNUAL FASHION SHOW & LUNCHEON
Click HERE to see the 2023 event and learn more about Harvesters.
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.