First Lunch A Success!

Thanks to everyone who came out to our first lunch of the semester yesterday, it was a great success! We ended up serving organic quinoa and black bean stew to over 150 people! Recipe hopefully coming soon.

We now have a core group of people working to organize these lunches biweekly, which is very exciting and we are coming up with ideas to make this a wonderful year for Community Eats.

Our next meal will be dinner at the SEC "Food is Fundamental" Conference (see below for more info). The conference and the dinner are free of charge, however registration is required, please visit http://foodisfundamental.com to register. Dinner will be Saturday September 27th, 5:45-6:45pm.

The next lunch served in Sprouts will be Friday October 10th, 11:30-1:30 and will be a special Thanksgiving themed meal.

Thanks for your support and see you all soon!

Food is FUNdaMENTAL Conference

The Student Environment Centre (SEC) and Friends of the UBC Farm (FotF) are putting on a conference called "Food is Fundamental" September 23-27th, 2008. The conference will address food issues that concern people, the environment and the economy in both local and global contexts.

The conference is FREE, for more information and to register please visit http://foodisfundamental.com.

Positions Availabe for First Semester!

Hi free food enthusiasts!

Community Eats is back! Our first lunch of the semester will be Friday September 12th, 11:30am - 1:30pm. The lunches will continue to be served biweekly in Sprouts. However, in order to make the lunches happen we need a strong base of volunteers and a dedicated group of guiding members. If you feel that you have time to commit to this project this year please take a look at the Volunteer Positions (1) and Guiding Member Positions (2). If you are interested in any position please email Heather (Community Eats Director) at communityeats@gmail.com. Please pass this email on to anyone who would be interested. Enjoy the last week of summer!

1. Volunteer Positions

Volunteers make up the base of our organization and they are integral to Community Eats' success. There are a few different volunteer positions available. Descriptions and times are below, please email Heather at communityeats@gmail.com to sign up for a biweekly volunteer shift.

Food Collection - Wednesday/Thursday

• visit distributors and stores to pick-up food donations, and bringing this food to campus via bus, bicycle, or personal vehicle.
  
• food collection generally takes place on Wednesdays or in the morning on Thursday before cooking begins.
  

Cooking - Thursday

• previous cooking experience not necessary, only a willingness to learn is needed.
  
• can help out with either or both of the shifts: Thursday afternoon food preparation (cleaning and chopping of vegetables, and menu planning), or Thursday evening cooking.
  
• some volunteers may also be needed in the morning before the lunch is served, when the food is re-heated.
  

Serving - Friday

• set up the serving space in Sprouts,
  
• serve the meal, and
  
• clean up the serving space and kitchens after the meal.
  

2. Community Eats Guiding Member Positions

Volunteer Coordinator

Approximate Time Commitment: five hours per week.

Responsibilities:

• With the Publicity Coordinator, organizes and manages a volunteer recruitment campaign at the beginning of term, through and ongoing throughout the semester through clubs days, Community Eats lunches or other avenues.
• Serves as a liaison between new volunteers and the Community Eats members.
• Keeps track of volunteer contact information gathered through recruitment.
• Informs interested individuals of the various roles that can be filled within Community Eats and informs volunteers about the basic mandate of Community Eats as outlined in the Volunteer Coordination Resources in this document
  
• Communicates regularly with returning/past volunteers about upcoming volunteer opportunities and needs.
• Attends regular meetings with the other Community Eats Guiding Members.
  

Food Collection Coordinator

Approximate Time Commitment: ten hours per week

Responsibilities:

• Coordinates the efforts of food collection volunteers to ensure duties are fulfilled.
• Communicates regularly with existing food donors to maintain a positive relationship and ensure their ongoing contribution to Community Eats.
• Seeks out new food donations from other businesses (as needed).
  
• Arranges food pickups and ensures all food is delivered to campus at the time specified by the Head Chef.
• Ensures that food is stored on campus according to the food safety plan outlined in the kitchen manual.
• Communicates regularly with the Head Chef about what type of food donations are anticipated or have been received, to ensure the Head Chef can plan an appropriate menu.
• Attends regular meetings with the other Community Eats Guiding Members.

Serving Coordinator

Approximate Time Commitment: seven hours per week

Qualifications:

• Is Food Safe certified, or will be certified within 1 month of taking on the position.
• Is familiar with the regular operation of Sprouts café, or will become familiar with its operation.
  
• Must be available for the duration of the time during which Community Eats lunches are served, as well as shortly before and after (Fridays from 10 or 10:30am until 2:30 or 3:00pm).
  

Responsibilities:

• Coordinates the efforts of serving volunteers to ensure duties are fulfilled, including those volunteers who would usually be working a Sprouts storefront shift.
• Oversees set up of the serving area before lunch begins, ensuring that all items on the Set-Up Checklist have been covered.
• Oversees serving through the duration of the lunch.
• Familiarizes volunteers with food-safe practices and the Food Safety Plan for Serving, and ensures that serving is conducted according to it.
• Oversees clean-up of serving space, kitchen, and dishes when the lunch is over. Ensures that all items on the Clean-Up Checklist have been covered.
• Keeps a record of the number of people served at each lunch.
• Collects donations during the lunch and ensures that the Administration/Finance Coordinator receives them to be deposited.
• Communicates regularly with Sprouts' Volunteer Coordinator to ensure volunteer needs are met on the serving day.
  
• Communicates regularly with the Community Eats Director and Sprouts Board members to maintain a positive relationship and ensure Community Eats ongoing use of Sprouts' café as a space in which to serve the lunches.
• Attends regular meetings with the other Community Eats Guiding Members.

Administration and Finance Coordinator

Approximate Time Commitment: five hours per week

Responsibilities:

• Organizes and serves as the Secretary at regular meetings of the Community Eats Guiding Members.
• Distributes meeting minutes to other Guiding Members after each meeting.
• Obtains, records, and organizes all the records of financial transactions in an Excel file, including donations, funding, and expenditures.
• Deposits and records donations received at lunches.
• In coordination with the NFC Treasurer, handles reimbursement of volunteers or Guiding Members for purchases authorized collectively by the Guiding Members.
• Manages existing funding and seeks out other sources of additional funding as it is needed.
• With the Community Eats Director, pursues increased campus community and institutional support for Community Eats in the form of funding, permanent kitchen or serving space, or other resources.
• Manages membership of the Community Eats Guiding Members Google Group (online discussion board).

Publicity Coordinator

Approximate Time Commitment: five hours per week

Responsibilities:

• Coordinates the efforts of promotion volunteers.
• Maintains and updates the Community Eats blog.
• Works with the Communications and Marketing manager of the NFC to ensure Community Eats' page on Sprouts' website is up-to-date.
• Works with other execs/volunteers to develop strategies for promoting Community Eats' initiatives to the UBC community,
• Creates promotional materials to be placed in Sprouts and elsewhere on campus that convey the vision and mission of Community Eats.
• Attends regular meetings with the other Community Eats Guiding Members.

See you in September!

Community Eats has wrapped up for this semester. Thanks so much to everyone who came out to the lunches and especially to the many many wonderful volunteers who helped us out to prepare them. We had a ton of fun this year, and we're looking forward to starting up again next school year.

Check back to the blog for updates serving times and dates in September, or look for signs up in Sprouts. We'll also be looking for volunteers at that point, so send us an email if you're interested in helping out.

Enjoy the summer, see you in the fall!