Guidelines

1. We are stationed outside in the elements, and require some mild heavy lifting (moving and arranging crates of produce). Our produce is handed out in its natural state, which means dirt and small bugs sometimes hitch a ride on a veggie. Please dress appropriately.

2. Canal Cafeteria celebrates ALL humans! We happily accept and encourage support from those of all gender identities, sexual orientations, religions, and races. If applicable, please inform us of your preferred pronouns so we can treat each other with as much respect as we all deserve.

3. Canal Cafeteria is an established nonprofit, and we expect a certain level of professionalism from our volunteers. Please do not commit to a volunteer shift if you are unsure that you will be able to make it, if you have to leave early, or if you cannot arrive at the scheduled start time.

4. PLEASE arrive on time and ready to jump into action. We have a brief meeting before setting up, and one person being tardy delays our entire operation. Our produce moves very quickly on busy days, and there is usually a line of community members waiting for us before we arrive. It is crucial that all of our volunteers arrive on time.

5. We know that life can be complicated, and are completely understanding of personal emergencies that may arise. That being said, Canal Cafeteria places an enormous amount of trust in our volunteers. Our community members rely on us to provide a service, and your reliability plays a key part in upholding those expectations. We allow for a call out as a one time courtesy. If you are unable to fulfill your commitment more than once, you will no longer be eligible to volunteer in the future. To avoid being added to our short notice/ no show list please cancel more than 48 hours in advance.

6. We LOVE when you share CC content online! Social media engagement plays a huge part in our growth. We do ask that you adhere to our verbiage when sharing. A lot of time and energy is put into creating our copy, and our specific phrasing and word choice is crucial to staying true to our message and mission. Feel free to repost our content directly, or copy any of our IG captions word for word. We always encourage you to take your own photos and videos when you volunteer, just please do not accompany your posts with captions that describe CC in your own words.

For further information on our mission, who we are, and our future goals, please see our FAQ page.