Opportunities From: Northern Illinois Food Bank

My Pantry Express has many locations across our service area to make receiving groceries convenient for our neighbors. Thank you for registering to help at one of our outdoor distributions! 

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE LOCATION HAS TEMPORARILY BEEN CHANGED!!!
(It is no longer at the Forrestal Elementary School due to school construction.)

*** NEW LOCATION AS OF 8/14/2024 ***
Great Lakes Naval Base --- 1830 Ohio Avenue --- Great Lakes, IL 60088

------> There is a square parking lot next to the Chapel Forrestal Village.
------> Use Pennsylvania Avenue to enter.

The Food Bank vehicle with MPX grocery orders will arrive by 4:00PM, so please check in with a Food Bank representative by 4:00PM so we have time to set up for the distribution that begins at 4:30PM.

Parking: Plan to park in the lot next to the Forrestal Village Chapel. This event is OUTSIDE; dress appropriately.

How YOU will be helping at distribution:

Please remember, many of the folks who are picking up may be accessing services like this for the first time and we want to make this as much of a normal and pleasant experience for them to know we are here to help them. People may arrive earlier the start of the distribution time, but please DO NOT begin handing out orders until we are all set up and ready to go! This site will be a "drive-through" model, so families will be driving up to the designated pick-up area and are NOT expected to leave their cars.  There may be people on foot who will just walk up, as well.  As customers approach, we ask that you only ask them for their order # or their name, whichever one they are comfortable providing, NO DOCUMENTATION IS REQUIRED OR NEEDED FOR THEM TO PICK UP ORDERS (such as photo ID or a utility bill). Once we locate all the bags for their orders, we will have them initial our order pick-up sheet and help them load groceries into their vehicles. Please ask where they would like you to do that (trunk, back seat, etc).

REMINDERS:

Please dress comfortably and suitable for the weather and be prepared to assist with lifting and/or carrying 30-40 lbs. Please remember to greet customers with a welcoming attitude!  They may be nervous about coming to pick-up in the first place. Please make note of anything/everything as this is a new program, we would appreciate any feedback and suggestions from you. Volunteers MUST be at LEAST 12 years old with a chaperone (chaperone required for ages 12-15) Volunteers 16 years old and older may volunteer without a chaperone

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact a Volunteer Coordinator at 630-443-6910.

Thank you for considering volunteering your time and attention to our neighbors through My Pantry Express!

My Pantry Express has many locations across our service area to make receiving groceries convenient for our neighbors. Please note the address for this MPX distribution: 3900 Fountain Square Pl., Waukegan, IL 60085 12:30pm - 2:30pm

 The van/truck will arrive by 12:30PM, please check in with a Food Bank representative by 12:30pm, so we have ample time to set up for the distribution to begin at 1:00PM.

How YOU will be helping at distribution:

We will be distributing at the Waukegan Walmart parking lot, near the pharmacy drive-thru. Parking is available in the lot. Please park further away from the truck, so customers can conveniently park. Look for a My Pantry Express sign. Please remember, many of the folks who are picking up may be accessing services like this for the first time and we want to make this as much of a normal and pleasant experience for them as possible.  We want them to know we are here to help. Families may arrive earlier than 1:00 PM to pick up, but PLEASE DO NOT begin handing out orders until we are all set up and ready to go! This site is a "pull-up and park" model, so we will be greeting our customers and then directing them to a parking spot to wait, if they are driving.  If there are any customers NOT driving, we will direct them to wait inside.   As they approach, we are only asking for either their order number or their name, whichever one they are comfortable providing, NO DOCUMENTATION (such as a photo ID or utility bill) IS REQUIRED OR NEEDED FOR THEM TO PICK UP ORDERS. Once we locate all the bags for their orders, we will have them initial and help load their groceries wherever they direct us to.

REMINDERS:

Please dress comfortably and suitable for the weather and be prepared to assist with lifting and/or carrying 30-40 lbs. Please remember to greet customers with a welcoming attitude!  They may be nervous about coming to pick-up in the first place. Please make note of anything/everything as this is a new program, we would appreciate any feedback and suggestions from you. Volunteers MUST be at LEAST 12 years old with a chaperone (chaperone required for ages 12-15) Volunteers 16 years old and older may volunteer without a chaperone

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact a Volunteer Coordinator at 630-443-6910.

Thank you for considering volunteering to help our neighbors through My Pantry Express!