One day, a friend convinced Sue Foster to accompany her to FiveCAP, where she volunteered for the Commodity Supplemental Food Program distribution. The Lake County resident has been volunteering for the agency ever since.

“I enjoy the food distribution and talking with all the people who come in,” Foster said. “It’s a nice group of people I work with and I’ve made friends with the people that come in and help.”

Foster still helps with the food distribution, but also assists with office operations.

“It’s something to do because before I was laid off from my job, I always worked in a factory,” she said. “Then we moved up here and it was something to do once or twice a week. With the office work, I enjoy when people come in and seeing if I can help them out.”

Volunteers like Foster help in the Lake County office by manning the reception desk, answering the phone, helping clients fill out paperwork, answering some of their questions and directing them to programs and services available to help.

“It’s good experience for anyone who wants to learn how to be a receptionist,” said FiveCAP Community Support Worker Dawn Summers. “One of our volunteers is retired from an office job, so she has a lot of experience and I’ve been able to train her on some of the basic computer work.”

At specific times during the year the agency also needs volunteers to help with annual events. During the annual garden and food preservation workshops, volunteers also help FiveCAP staff sort plants or canning and freezing supplies into individual packages that are given to workshop participants.

“For the garden workshop, they cut and pack up 200 sets of plants and with the food preservation workshop they will cut and pack up 200 sets of canning jars and freezer bags,” Summers said, noting that there are always a wide variety of tasks that the agency depends on volunteers to complete. “For each of our food distribution dates, they help us unload the delivery truck, sort and pack the food and distribute it to the clients.

In June alone, Lake County volunteers clocked nearly 180 hours helping FiveCAP operate its programs for low-income families.

“I couldn’t do my job without the volunteers,” Summers said.

Foster recalled being surprised when she first started volunteering at the number of programs available to low-income families in the community. She encourages other people to find ways to get involved and contribute to these causes.

“I’ve told other people that it might be something for them to do,” she said. “It makes you feel good.”

For more information, or to sign up as a volunteer for FiveCAP’s programs, stop by the Lake County office, located at 2476 West 44^th St., in Baldwin, or call (231) 745-4617.

Carol Witucki enjoys “absolutely everything” about volunteering. Most afternoons, the Manistee County resident can be found at FiveCAP, Inc., helping out with office operations. She also contributes her time when the agency distributes food and hosts self-sufficiency workshops.

She came to the work after she was placed in other service agencies through the Experience Works program.

“I worked … at DHS for a year and at LoveINC for three years, but you can only be in the program for four years so when my time was up, I retired,” Witucki said. “But I liked that kind of work, so I came over here and talked to (FiveCAP Community Support Worker) Julie (Ingison) and I’ve been here every day since.

“I enjoy the people, especially the people I work with. I enjoy going home at night knowing I helped somebody.”

Witucki has recommended volunteering to several people she knows and encourages people to get visit FiveCAP to learn about ways they can contribute. Ingison added that there are a variety of volunteer opportunities for everyone.

“We have a place for volunteers of all ages and abilities,” she said. “Some of our older volunteers can’t use a computer or can’t lift, but they can help clients fill out paperwork. We can always find something for volunteers to do.”

“We have several different things for people to do as volunteers. With food distribution, we need people to pack and carry out the boxes, and we need a lot of people to help unload the truck. Without these volunteers, we would not be able to distribute food on our own.”

Volunteers also help operate FiveCAP’s Manistee County office by manning the reception desk, answering the phone, helping clients fill out paperwork, answering some of their questions and directing them to programs and services available to help.

At specific times during the year the agency also needs volunteers to help with annual events. Each Christmas, the agency collects presents and distributes them to families in need through Toys for Tots/Gifts for Teens. Volunteers help sort and set up the toys and also assist the families as they “shop” for gifts on the day of distribution. During the annual garden and food preservation workshops, volunteers also help FiveCAP staff sort plants or canning and freezing supplies into individual packages that are given to workshop participants.

“I could not do my job without the help of our volunteers,” Ingison said. “The value of their help is hard to put into words.”

Since the beginning of October, FiveCAP has had 64 volunteers contribute more than 1,250 hours during 20 different events, including Toys for Tots/Gifts for Teens, food distributions, workshop and the annual Walk for Warmth fundraiser.

“Some people think they don’t have time to volunteer,” Ingison said, adding there are other ways to contribute to FiveCAP’s programs. “Some people give of resources through pantry, toy and crocheted/knitted hat donations. These are just as valuable. We don’t get a lot of funds to cover our pantry so donations are always helpful. I have two gentlemen that come in every month and get a list of what our pantry needs and goes and purchase it. We call them our pantry angels (they have kept us from having to shut down our pantry all year). This year we exceeded last year’s pantries given back in June and the year is only half over.”

Volunteering can be an eye-opening experience. Witucki said people would be surprised at the number of people in need in the community.

“If you want to give back or put something in your life, it’s a good feeling,” she added. “It’s a great feeling.”

For more information, or to sign up as a volunteer for FiveCAP’s programs, stop by the Manistee County office, located at 265 First St., in Manistee, or call (231) 723-8327.

Mason County volunteers help FiveCAP provide assistance to people in need

At 85 years old, Fred Annand said he feels “great,” and has no desire to spend all his time at home, watching television. Since 2010, the Mason County resident has been volunteering for FiveCAP, Inc. and can often be found helping out at the agency’s food distribution programs.

“It gives me something to do,” Annand said. “I enjoy getting out and having some purpose in life. I enjoy meeting the people as I’m passing the food boxes out and it’s a nice group of people that I work with.”

FiveCAP Community Support Director Holly Haywood presents a certificate of appreciation to Mason County volunteer Fred Annand for his dedication to the agency’s programs.

Annand is on hand for all of the programs that FiveCAP offers, including the annual self-sufficiency workshops and Toys for Tots/Gifts for Teens at Christmastime.

“I just enjoy the whole thing,” he added.

FiveCAP Community Support Director Holly Haywood said the contribution of volunteers like Annand is essential to the agency’s continued ability to provide services to low-income residents.

“We couldn’t do food distribution without them,” Haywood said, noting that FiveCAP’s service area encompasses four counties and each county has its own office and programs to operate. “We have one staff person for each county and give out more than 1,000 boxes for CSFP (Commodity Supplemental Food Program) and more than 1,500 for TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program) between all four counties. Without volunteers to unload, pack and distribute the supplies, we couldn’t have these programs.”

While Haywood said she can find a place for anyone who wants to contribute, in Mason County, volunteers are especially needed to help unload the semi that delivers the food for both of its distribution programs.

“We can use volunteers of every age and ability, always,” she said, “but we’re in particular need right now of a couple of people who can do a bit of lifting.”

At specific times during the year the agency also needs volunteers to help with annual events. Each Christmas, the agency collects presents and distributes them to families in need through Toys for Tots/Gifts for Teens. Volunteers help sort and set up the toys and also assist the families as they “shop” for gifts on the day of distribution. During the annual garden and food preservation workshops, volunteers also help FiveCAP staff sort plants or canning and freezing supplies into individual packages that are given to workshop participants.

Annand recommends volunteering to others, and has recruited old friends to join him and made new friends along the way.

“I’ve recommended it to different people,” he said of volunteering. “My neighbors, I talk to them every day and I recommended it to them and they are very involved now too. We pick up (another volunteer) and we all ride together to save on mileage.

“I feel I’m doing something constructive. When I work, I’m accomplishing something. I just think it’s a wonderful program and I’m glad to be a helper. I even ask Holly every once in a while if she has anything else for me to do.”

For more information, or to sign up as a volunteer for FiveCAP’s programs, stop by the Mason County office, located at 302 North Main St., in Scottville, or call (231) 757-3785.