Day 3 - LA Food Bank

I'll be honest. I've worked at food banks before. You sort and pack a lot of food. It's like busy work and you don't really get to see the direct impact you're making because you're working on the intake side and not the distribution. Obviously, what is impressive about LA Food Bank is the scale and the size. In just a few hours we sorted and packed over 17,000 pounds of food, which is like over 14,000 individual meals. We went through donations and checked for expiration dates and nutrition facts. We also had to make sure everything was sealed and not leaking or even possible leakage. They don't want to risk attracting bugs and rodents. So we had to throw away some food that was edible, but honestly, it was very little compared to how much we were able to keep. What I want you to know is that these food banks depend on volunteers in order to be successful and financially efficient. Every item that gets donated has to be quickly examined and checked before being packaged away to be distributed later. So please, take time to give of your time and efforts at your local food bank on a regular basis. The food you sort and pack gets distributed to local food pantries and soup kitchens that serve those in need. It's also a great way to spend time working as a team and seeing the results of a collective effort.

After the food bank, we stopped by downtown LA and visited "The Last Bookstore." It was neat to see and experience, but pretty much anything I wanted to buy I figured I should wait until I got home so I didn't have to take up space and weight in my luggage. Later that night we treated ourselves to some Southern Fare at Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles. That was some good eatin'!