Free Food & Services

Free Food & Services

Find a food pantry near you and explore the free services that can help you and your family.

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Apply for Food Assistance

Apply for Food Assistance Programs

Get free help applying for Food Assistance Programs and accessing the benefits available to you and your family.

Apply For WIC 

Apply For SNAP

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Job Training

Job Training

Sign up for one of CFBNJ’s free job training programs that can prepare you for a career in the culinary or logistics industries.

 

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Healthy Recipes

Healthy Recipes

Healthy recipes, cooking videos, and tips are all here. Browse through the info provided by our Nutrition Education team to get the most out of your grocery budget without compromising on nutrition.

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Donate

Donate

Learn about all the ways to give a monetary gift, including recurring donations, planned gifts, tributes, and more to CFBNJ to lift up our neighbors.

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Volunteer

Volunteer

Explore the many opportunities to volunteer – whether that is packing food with your company, family, and friends at either our Hillside or Egg Harbor Township locations, distributing healthy food at one of our partners, or making phone calls from the comfort of your home.

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Advocate

Advocate

Take action to support our advocacy efforts that address the root causes of hunger and learn more about how CFBNJ collaborates with legislators.

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Fundraise

Fundraise

Coordinate a virtual or in-person fundraiser with friends, family, or coworkers.

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Donate Food & Goods

Donate Food & Goods

Over one-third of our food is donated by generous supporters like you. Set up a food or special product drive, join our retail food donation program, and more.

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Make a Corporate Donation

Make a Corporate Donation

Manufacturers, retailers, corporations, and small businesses can donate food, funds, and time.

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Events

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Attend a CFBNJ event to show your support and meet other like-minded supporters.

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Youth

Youth

Opportunities for youth engagement includes fundraising, food drives, and service days.

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Sign Up to Volunteer

Sign Up to Volunteer

Sign up to sort and pack food with your company, family, and friends at either our Hillside or Egg Harbor locations.

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Corporate Groups

Corporate Groups

Use your next company outing to give back to your community.

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Special Volunteer Programs

Special Volunteer Programs

View the opportunities available for regular volunteers to level up their participation at CFBNJ.

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Youth

Special Volunteer Programs

Opportunities for youth engagement includes fundraising, food drives, and service days.

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About Us

About Us

Discover how our journey began almost 50 years ago, and how we are committed to ending hunger in New Jersey.

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Our Programs

Learn about what we do to help our neighbors in need.

Learn about what we do to help our neighbors in need.

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How a FoodBank Works

How a FoodBank Works

Understand how food and hygiene supplies get from our two warehouses to your community.

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Leadership

Leadership

Meet our executive leadership team and Board of Directors.

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Annual Report & Financials

Annual Report & Financials

Get a clear picture of our finances, how our programs impact the community, and how it all ties together.

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Careers

Careers

Check out our career opportunities and don’t miss a chance to put your talents to work for a great purpose.

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News & Press

Keep up to date with the latest news about our work to end hunger.

Keep up to date with the latest news about our work to end hunger.

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Our Locations

Locations

We have locations in Hillside and Egg Harbor Township, each with their own events and volunteering opportunities.

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Strategic Plan

Strategic Plan

Explore the roadmap of the future of CFBNJ and how we plan on helping hungry neighbors going forward.

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FoodBank Volunteer
Opportunities at CFBNJ

Our volunteer program gives individuals, families and groups of many sizes a meaningful opportunity to make a direct impact on hunger in a positive and safe environment.

Welcome to the CFBNJ Volunteer Program!

Last year, our volunteers made nearly 35,000 site visits, dedicating nearly 90,000 hours to our cause (that’s equivalent to 43 full-time employees). We couldn’t do the work we do without our dedicated volunteers.

Volunteer with the Community
FoodBank of New Jersey

Both the CFBNJ Hillside and CFBNJ Egg Harbor Township warehouses are open for volunteers.

We encourage you to bring food to donate as you volunteer.

Volunteering at CFBNJ Egg Harbor Township

Volunteering at CFBNJ Hillside

All volunteers must be aged 12 or older.

Volunteers must complete a GMP Rules Form.

Bringing food to donate is encouraged.

Advance sign-ups are required (no walk-ins).

Volunteers aged 16 & 17 must have written permission from a parent in order to volunteer alone

Each volunteer must complete a GMP Rules Form

Most needed food items:

  • Canned fish & meat (tuna, chicken, ham)
  • Shelf stable milk
  • Boxed meals (pasta, cereal, rice, potatoes)
  • Canned & packaged meals (max & cheese, chili, soups)
  • Peanut butter (plastic jars only)
  • Canned vegetables & fruits
  • Diapers & feminine hygiene products
  • *no glass, cellophane, bottled water, soda, or baby food

Advance sign-ups are required (no walk-ins)

We ask that volunteers arrive 15 minutes prior to the shift start time to allow time for parking and check-in. To prevent disruption of volunteer activities that have already begun: Volunteers who arrive after the project has started may be asked to wait until additional volunteers arrive. Group members who arrive after the start of the project may not be placed with the rest of their group. Volunteers who are more than 30 minutes or more after the start of the shift may be given an administrative task or can reschedule for another date/time. We understand that traffic and other circumstances may cause volunteers to be late, but we ask that volunteers plan ahead so they can be on time and ensure maximum productivity and satisfaction during volunteer activities.

FAQ

  • Yes. You can reserve a volunteer shift at either location on our CFBNJ volunteer signup page.

  • Warehouse volunteers at our Hillside location assist with a variety of tasks including sorting and repacking food items, assembling our Emergency Food boxes, Family Packs and Senior boxes, packaging bulk product into family sized bags, and help with office work and data entry tasks.

    If you are volunteering at our Egg Harbor Township location, you can expect another selection of activities. These include working at our help desk, intake, and pantry assistants.

    Learn more about what you can expect on our Volunteer FAQ page.

  • We welcome groups and offer that option when you sign up to volunteer. Groups must be registered and scheduled in advance of their shift. There are a few things that group leaders need to keep in mind: please be sure to distribute warehouse guidelines to everyone in the group, and that volunteer groups with teens aged 12 through 16 must be accompanied by one adult for every 10 teens. Adults must stay with their groups in their assigned work areas.

  • Dress is casual and comfortable (remember that the warehouse is not temperature controlled).

    The following items are not allowed in the warehouse: open-toe shoes, heels, sandals or flip flops; short shorts/short skirts, tank tops, bare midriffs, or revealing clothing; bags of any kind – purses, backpacks, cross body, etc; any controversial clothing that contains messages that can be considered derogatory, insulting or otherwise disrespectful to employees or visitors.

    NOTE: It is best not to bring your valuables to the warehouse. However, we do have some lockers available for your use, if necessary. The Community FoodBank is not responsible for missing personal belongings.

  • We ask that volunteers arrive 15 minutes prior to the shift start time to allow time for parking and check-in.

    To prevent disruption of volunteer activities that have already begun

    • Volunteers who arrive after the project has started may be asked to wait until additional volunteers arrive.
    • Group members who arrive after the start of the project may not be placed with the rest of their group.
    • Volunteers who are more than 30 minutes late may not be able to join a warehouse project that has already started. Volunteers who arrive 30 minutes or more after the start of the shift may be given an administrative task or can reschedule for another date/time.

    We understand that traffic and other circumstances may cause volunteers to be late, but we ask that volunteers plan ahead so they can be on time and ensure maximum productivity and satisfaction during volunteer activities.

Corporate
Volunteering Opportunities

Corporate volunteer groups, representing the FoodBank’s most important mission delivery partners, are always a welcome presence at CFBNJ. Our volunteer activities provide a unique opportunity for companies to give back and foster employee engagement while making a direct impact on hunger and raising awareness about important issues facing so many of our New Jersey neighbors.  Corporate volunteer groups engage in a range of activities.

At our Hillside location, they might:

  • Sort and repack donated food and other items
  • Assemble Family Packs, Senior Food Boxes or Diabetes Food Kits
  • Package bulk products such as pasta
  • Make meals in our kitchen

At our Egg Harbor Township location, they might:

  • Sort and repack donated food and other items
  • Help at our on-site or mobile pantries, providing food directly to our neighbors in need

Corporate volunteer groups may sign up online or contact our team.

You can further support CFBNJ by ordering on-premise catering for your volunteer team to make a tangible impact and help fight hunger in New Jersey.

20 Person minimum for catering

Women Fighting Hunger

Women Fighting Hunger supports the goals and priorities of CFBNJ, and provides Food, Help and Hope through hands-on philanthropy, leadership and collaboration. Together, WFH works to support CFBNJ programs and directly engage members and the extended community in the fight against hunger, and work to raise essential funds and awareness. These projects provide much needed support to the efforts of CFBNJ and can be tailored to anyone’s time, interests, and talents.

With over 60 dedicated volunteers, Women Fighting Hunger currently has members working on the following projects/teams: advocacy, college pantry liaisons, communications, diaper and period product drives, Child Nutrition, Workforce Development Career Assistance, Network Grant Support, stewardship, Students Change Hunger, and the Annual Turkey Drive.

Emerging Leaders

CFBNJ’s Emerging Leaders is a group of young professionals in New Jersey committed to ending hunger.

CFBNJ’s Emerging Leaders group contributes innovative ideas and resources to facilitate CFBNJ’s mission through advocacy, awareness, and financial support.

Why Join the Emerging Leaders?

  • Experience rewarding engagement in ending hunger in New Jersey
  • Create deep and lasting ties to CFBNJ
  • Tap into individual skills and experience
  • Build a sense of community with other young professionals with opportunities for education, enrichment, and personal growth

Packathon 2024

Junior Volunteer Days (Formerly Family Days)

The CFBNJ warehouse in Hillside is pleased to bring back Junior Volunteer Days. Junior Volunteer Days allow kids aged 6-11 to volunteer with their parents.

Upcoming Junior Volunteer Days:

  • Saturday, August 17: 9:00AM – 11:00 AM, 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM
  • Saturday, October 5: 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM
  • Saturday, December 7: 9:00AM – 11:00 AM, 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM

Youth Volunteer Opportunities

The Community FoodBank of New Jersey offers a variety of innovative programs dedicated to educating children, teens, and young adults about hunger and poverty. We also provide them with the tools to make meaningful changes in their communities. There are many ways for youth to get involved, either on their own or with guidance from their teachers.

The Care Crew

The Community FoodBank of New Jersey in Hillside is launching a Volunteer Warehouse Ambassador program, known as the Care Crew. The Care Crew will be trained volunteers who will support CFBNJ staff to provide guidance, information, and gratitude to volunteer groups (corporate, school, community) in the warehouse.

Care Crew members will be asked to make a one-year commitment which will include an application, interview, orientation session, and commit to two volunteer shifts in Hillside per month. Candidates should have already completed two volunteer shifts at the Hillside warehouse before they apply to join the Care Crew.

The Care Crew will:

  • Work with staff to greet and sign-in groups
  • Provide an overview, if staff is unavailable
  • Circulate among the group during the volunteer activity to answer questions about the project or the FoodBank
  • Learn how to work various projects – Food Sorting, Box building, and Pasta
  • Have strong knowledge of FoodBank mission, priorities, and programs
  • Thank volunteer groups at the end of the shift

Volunteer Spotlight:
Meet Kenny

For over thirty years, Kenny has been with CFBNJ, volunteering in his spare time. During CFBNJ’s earliest days of winter coat drives and thrift sales, Kenny and his daughter helped sort through the mountains of bags full of coats.

Contact Volunteer Services

To submit a question or inquire about one of our Hillside Family Days, please fill out the form below and a member of our Volunteer Services team will reach out to you.

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