Illinois Valley Food Pantry seeks workers, volunteers

On paper, it’s not an appealing job description – minimum wage, no benefits, must be able to lift 50 pounds – but the Illinois Valley Food Pantry had never had trouble filling the posts.

Until now.

Mary Jo Credi is executive director of the food pantry in La Salle and she’s scraping to fill three slots: office assistant, van driver, assistant driver. If that weren’t enough, she’s trying to round up four or five volunteers to do complete scattered fill-in hours throughout the week.

It’s a first for the food pantry. Credi said she cannot remember having three staff vacancies – “Never all at the same time” – and volunteers had seldom been in short supply. Historically, the challenge in La Salle was finding tasks to occupy the many willing hands.

But that was before the novel coronavirus came along.

“COVID was a big problem for our volunteers,” Credi said, “and when we were getting out of COVID the volunteers weren’t coming back.”

As for the paid positions, Credi thinks she’s in the same boat as employers who are struggling to find willing workers. The workforce has shrunk and Credi oversees a not-for-profit without the resources to compete in a tight labor market – and that’s before candidates learn about ancillary duties such as sorting and cleanup.

“People think it’s easy-peasy work, and it really isn’t,” she said. “There’s a lot of grunt work – a lot.

“But you’re getting paid to help others who are in need. You go home feeling good about yourself.”

Among food pantries, the labor shortage so far is limited to La Salle, which is one of the few to have paid staff. Community Food Basket in Ottawa has some paid staff and no vacancies at present, although executive director Marissa Vicich said she won’t turn away volunteers.

“We could always use a little extra help,” Vicich said.

Most of the agencies that feed the area’s hungry have a paid director but are otherwise wholly dependent on volunteer labor. Bureau County Food Pantry could use one helper Thursday evenings. Conversely, Hall Township Food Pantry in Spring Valley, the Western Bureau County Food Pantry and Streatorland Community Food Pantry in Streator are well-staffed and not actively seeking volunteers.