Volunteer with the Best Crew in the City
Volunteers Make La Soupe Happen!
Whether chopping vegetables, packing soupe, rescuing food, or teaching classes, our volunteers’ dedication makes it possible to serve our community every day. Last year alone, a combination of in-hour, food rescue, and group volunteers contributed over 22,000 hours to support our mission.
Why Volunteer with Us?
A Front-Row Seat to the Mission: Get an inside look at how food rescue and community nourishment actually happen, day to day. See your efforts in action. Every shift you work directly helps neighbors in need and ensures that perfectly good food finds its way to a table instead of a landfill.
Flexible Scheduling: Whether you have an hour a week or a few hours a month, we will help you find a shift that fits your life.
Skill Building: Learn real kitchen skills–knife work, food safety, meal prep, and more all alongside our culinary team.
Volunteer Opportunities
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Roll up your sleeves in our kitchen. In-house volunteers chop produce, prep meals, and package rescued food for distribution–while our education volunteers teach cooking and nutrition classes that help people stretch what they learn into everyday meals at home. No experience required.
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Hit the road for good. Driving volunteers use their own vehicles to rescue surplus food from local grocery stores and restaurants, delivering it directly to La Soupe. Drivers also pick up prepared meals from La Soupe and distribute them to non-profit partners across the community. This role is ideal for anyone with a flexible schedule looking to make a direct impact.
Tuesday & Wednesday Shifts: These routes operate through our expanded partnership with Last Mile Food Rescue. To volunteer on these days, email volunteer@lasoupe.org to join the pilot team.
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Team up for good and bring your crew to work side-by-side chopping and packaging rescued food. This opportunity is perfect for companies, schools, and community organizations looking to make a real impact.
A few good-to-knows:Everyone volunteering must be at least 13 years old.
If you are bringing a group of volunteers 13-15 years old, we ask that one chaperone (18+) per 8 youth volunteers be on site through the entirety of the volunteer experience.
If you are bringing a group of volunteers 16-17 years old, we ask that one chaperone (18+) be on site through the entirety of the volunteer experience.
Most positions involve standing, bending, lifting, and repetitive motion. If your group has physical limitations or needs, just let us know in advance and we'll make accommodations.
If your group is interested in volunteering or learning more, please fill out our group request form and a member of our team will follow up to confirm a date and share everything your group needs to prepare within 3-5 business days of receiving the request.
La Soupe and AmeriCorps RSVP
La Soupe is proud to be a partner with the AmeriCorps RSVP (Retired & Senior Volunteer Program). RSVP is the nation’s largest volunteer network for adults 55 years or older and is federally funded through AmeriCorps Seniors.
Perks of joining the RSVP program:
Special invitations to RSVP specific recognition events
Experience the camaraderie of a nationally recognized network of people who hold the same values and interests
Mileage reimbursement for volunteers who are driving as part of their volunteer time (our Food Rescue Volunteers)
FREE supplemental accident, personal liability and excess automobile liability insurance while volunteering
Annual incentives based on volunteer monthly hours
To enroll in RSVP, complete their application. The RSVP representative at Vantage Aging and La Soupe Volunteer Department will manage the logistics, partnerships, and events related to this program.
General FAQs:
Can’t find the answer to your question? Contact us.
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Not at all! No kitchen experience is required–we’’ walk you through everything you need to know before your shift and hopefully send you home with some skills you can use in your own kitchen.
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Because La Soupe is a working kitchen, walk-in shifts are not able to be accommodated. To sign up, please complete an application and sign up for open shifts that are convenient for your schedule.
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We welcome volunteers ages 13 and up. Volunteers ages 13-15 must be accompanied by an adult (18+) chaperone. Volunteers 16 and up do not need a chaperone but will need a legal guardian to sign the waiver.
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Yes! In-house volunteering and driving shifts both count towards service hour requirements. Please bring any paperwork you need to have completed to your shift.
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Yes–just let us know before your shift starts and email volunteer@lasoupe.org so we can get you set up.
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Yes, we are able to verify community service hours completed through in-house shifts or driving runs. Email volunteer@lasoupe.org ahead of time so we can make sure everything is in place for your paperwork.
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We recommend wearing comfortable attire that you can work in. Your feet must be covered and your hair restrained.
YES: Pants or knee-length shorts, t-shirts, socks, closed-toe shoes, and a head covering such as a hat, scarf, or bandana.
NO: Sleeveless shirts, flowing sleeves, flip-flops/sandals, or dangling jewelry.
La Soupe will provide hair and beard (required if longer than 1”) nets as needed, as well as aprons and gloves.
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Parking Lot: 954 E McMillan (across from La Soupe near ETC/Dancefix). You’ll need a parking pass, available at the front counter.
Street Parking: Metered and unmetered parking is available on the streets surrounding La Soupe. Public parking is monitored by the city, please be mindful to observe signage when parking on street.
Food Runner FAQs:
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Each run is assigned a Rescue Size under run details. Use the information below for guidance:
Run Size Car Size # of Black Crates
Small Sedan 1–3
Medium SUV 4–8
Large Van or Truck 8+
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The time listed in Pickup Window is the time to arrive for your pickup from a grocer or to La Soupe for your delivery to an agency.
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Log on to Food Rescue US and from your home page, click on “view open runs” from the top. Complete the information and click on “Post Details and Close Run” at the bottom of the screen.
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If you can commit to a particular run each week, adopt it so that you don’t have to keep signing up for it. If you can’t make a particular run, modify your schedule to cancel that occurrence.
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Log on to Food Rescue US and “un - claim” your run. If you have adopted the run, un - claim that occurrence. You must close all of your completed runs before you can modify your schedule.