Public Service

San Francisco Food Bank
Monday March 31st, 2008
Entry by: Lea Tomachinski

I recently volunteered at the San Francisco Food Bank and was able to see and experience how donations were expedited to the people that need them the most. It turned out to be an amazing experience, one that I would strongly recommend to anyone wanting to help their community. Volunteers make up 30% of the work force needed to carry out their daily operations. The staff that help the volunteers were so friendly and encouraging. They took a lot of pride in what they were doing for the community and made sure we were all having fun while working.

I spent the first part of my day in one room with 20 other volunteers where there was a 2000 lb bag of pinto beans that we needed to break down in to 1 lb packages for distribution. The second half of my day was in the packaging room where we put together packages with different items to be delivered to the elderly. Volunteering gave me a feeling of satisfaction that I don't normally get when I do something for myself. I am so happy I had this opportunity to learn, help and be more aware of my community.

KPFA
Friday March 28th, 2008
Entry by: Yvette Mathews-Mason

I love that I work for a company that gives me two days a year off to volunteer. I was unsure about what to do, so when the opportunity came to volunteer at KPFA during their fund drive, I jumped for it. KPFA is a free radio station in Berkeley that works solely on volunteer hours. When I got there I was welcomed with a free breakfast and friendly smiles. Whenever I answered the phone, I was always generously thanked for being there and helping out. I loved it so much! I definitely want to continue to volunteer there.

I haven’t done as much volunteering as I’d like because I have a crazy schedule and so much going on; but this company gave me a chance to do it. It sparked my interest and made me realize how important giving back is.

San Francisco Food Bank
Thursday March 20th, 2008
Entry by: David Blum

Recently, I had the opportunity to volunteer for the San Francisco Food Bank. The San Francisco Food Bank’s goal is to eliminate hunger in San Francisco. I was thoroughly impressed by the size of the building, and how much they offer to our city’s hungry population. They have everything food related- from beans to eggs and bread. I helped bag 1-pound bags of beans and rice during my time there. It was a rewarding experience just seeing the place, and how many people’s lives that the Food Bank effects. Even more rewarding was being able to contribute to eleviating hunger in San Francisco. I look forward to volunteering for the Food Bank again in the near future. I feel very lucky to be part of a company that gives me the opportunity to give back to the community.

San Francisco Food Bank
Wednesday August 29th, 2007
Entry by: Glenn Karamath

I signed up to do some volunteer work with San Francisco’s Project Homeless Connect and I must say it was a great experience for me to be a part of. I worked with the street outreach team and our main job was to go out into the community and inform our city’s homeless residents that public services were available to them. I was very impressed by the commitment and passion that the volunteer’s had for this event. I am also very thankful to work for a company like Headsets.com, that encouraged me to participate in this great community event. I will definitely volunteer again.

Project Homeless Connect 18
Wednesday August 29th, 2007
Entry by: Leslie Avila

I recently volunteered with San Francisco’s Project Homeless Connect. PHC’s mission is to “rally the city to support and create lasting solutions for homeless San Franciscans”. This project was started in October 2004 by Mayor Gavin Newsom, and brings together health and human services from over 1000 community volunteers. I was proud to be one of the 1,255 volunteers with Project Homeless Connect 18, and provided my services with the Data Entry team. We were responsible for inputting information into a database that allows PHC to understand what our homeless need and be able to provide better services in the future.

I was overwhelmed by the compassion of the people and local businesses in this city. Over 2,250 ‘clients’ received services such as dental and eye exams, employment services, food, clothing, glasses, mental health services, getting an ID etc. I will definitely volunteer again; it was such a good cause and the other volunteers are so passionate about what they are doing.

Habitat for Humanity
Thursday April 19, 2007
Entry by: Dave Freeman

I volunteered with the San Francisco Habitat for Humanity organization and got the opportunity to work alongside some really caring people, helping them build homes for some of the less fortunate citizens of our city. It was really tough work, but at the same time very rewarding. We dug some ditches, put up fences and painted. The soreness I felt the next day was more than offset by the pride I felt in having helped. I’ve never worked for a company that was so eager to be a great member of the community, and I feel proud to work here.

Habitat for Humanity
Tuesday April 17, 2007
Entry by: Chris Huff

Recently I had the opportunity to spend a day volunteering for Habitat for Humanity. This is a great cause which builds new houses for low-income families who are struggling to get by and need better living conditions. In the neighborhood that I was working in, Habitat had already completed four houses, and we were working on the last two. I helped to break down scaffolding, clean up drywall, inventory tools and parts, and assisted setting up a framework for laying concrete later. It was dirty, tiresome work. But, at the end of the day, one of the families that Habitat had helped came home.

One family member was in a wheelchair, and he used the new wheelchair ramp to get into his new home, waving at us as he went by. I can only imagine how much better his day-to-day life must be now that Habitat for Humanity has done so much for him. I have newfound respect for everyone at Habitat, and everyone else who was also volunteering, putting their time and effort in so that yet another family will have the same chance. It was an awesome experience, and it was all due to Headsets.com encouraging me to do something for the community.