Avionté Employees Volunteer Time at Feed My Starving Children

Last week, the Sales, IT and the Implementation teams all spent some time volunteering in Eagan, Minn. for Feed My Starving Children (FMSC). The organization, which was founded in 1987, provides targeted, nutritious food assistance to nearly 70 countries in the developing world through missionary partnerships at orphanages, schools, clinics, refugee camps and malnourishment centers.

When we arrived at Feed My Starving Children, we were asked to sign in and to put our hair nets on. Then, we got seated in a long, narrow room with the other volunteers, where the volunteer coordinator showed us a short video and gave a brief presentation about the organization, and who and where it serves. We were introduced to the other volunteer groups, most of which were families or employees from other local companies. Then, we headed to the back room to get to work!

Before getting started, we were told what we’d be doing: our duty was to hand-pack meals in MannaPack bags, which would contain four main ingredients: rice, textured soy protein, dried vegetable and seasoned vitamins and minerals. The coordinator had explained that the ingredients are chosen because they are formula-rich foods that stay in the system and provide unique, specific health results.

There were various steps to the process, from labeling bags, to filling them, to sealing them or and travelling to and from the warehouse to ensure that everyone’s pans of ingredients remained full. We worked filled bags and boxed them for close to an hour and a half, then filed back into the main room.

The coordinator told us that just one cup of the mixture we’d compiled would provide enough energy for a starving child for one day, and that each meal provided by Feed My Starving Children costs only 22 cents to produce. With 43 of us packing, we filled 71 boxes and provided 15,336 meals, enough food to feed 42 kids for a whole year!

“Thank you for coming out today,” the volunteer coordinator said at the end of our packing session. “You are the hearts and souls of Feed My Starving Children.”

It was a rewarding feeling to volunteer for such a good cause and that afternoon, it truly felt like we were making a difference!