• Other Global Locations
  • Search
Host an Event
Donate
  • Meal Packaging

We Asked You to Share #WhyIVolunteer With Rise Against Hunger — Here’s What You Said

on  April 16, 2025

Every April, Global Volunteer Month is recognized to celebrate the power of volunteerism and encourage people to get involved. Volunteers play a vital role in positive change across the globe. 

At Rise Against Hunger, we impacted over 9.4 million lives in 41 countries in 2024 — and this truly wouldn’t be possible without volunteers like YOU! Volunteers help us package millions of meals each year that provide critical nutrition for people facing hunger. 

In honor of this year’s Global Volunteer Month, the organization Points of Light encouraged other nonprofits to share #WhyIVolunteer stories and we wanted to be part of it. We are so thankful for our volunteers for coming alongside us in our mission, and we know each of you has a unique reason for volunteering to help end world hunger. To celebrate some of the many reasons, we asked a few volunteers in Texas, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Georgia to share why they volunteer with Rise Against Hunger. Check out their stories below!

Shonda, a volunteer at a meal packaging event with Central Pointé Church of Christ in Dallas, Texas, in March 2025

“Volunteering for Rise Against Hunger, this is probably my third time. It is just so meaningful and heartfelt to know that we are giving and contributing to communities beyond our four walls to feed them and nurture them. So, that’s why I volunteer and my family volunteers for Rise Against Hunger.”

Demarcco, Congregational Care Minister at Central Pointé Church of Christ and meal packaging volunteer in Dallas, Texas, in March 2025

“We just wanted to be a part of this because, as a church, God wants us to go out and do all we can to help those that are in need.”

Olivia, a volunteer at the February 2025 community meal packaging event in Nashville, Tennessee

“I work for the [Nashville] Sounds and they put a big emphasis on getting out into the community and volunteering, so I thought this was a great opportunity since I volunteered for a few years back home with Rise Against Hunger and wanted to give back to my new community here in Nashville.”

Lizzy, a volunteer at the February 2025 community meal packaging event in Nashville, Tennessee

“I’ve been involved with Rise Against Hunger since I was in elementary school. In 2012, I got the chance to go to Nicaragua with the organization and see where these meals go and feed them myself. It meant a lot to me. It changed my life. I’ve been involved with the organization even more since. When I was in high school, I hosted two of my own [meal packaging] events and packaged combined over 50,000 meals… I’ve loved this organization forever, and I want to do more with it.”

Meal packaging volunteer at an event with St. Monica Parish in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, in April 2025

“I came out today because it’s a tradition for our family. I think it’s really important to give back and to help those in the community who need food and substance.”

Volunteer at a meal packaging event with St. Monica Parish in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, in April 2025

“It’s super fun to do this, and I really like coming back, helping people.”

Cleve (pictured right), a volunteer since 2023 at the Rise Against Hunger Atlanta warehouse in Marietta, Georgia

“I volunteer with Rise Against Hunger because it is my way of giving back. I have been blessed with much, and those of us who are blessed are obligated to bless others. In that light, it is an honor and privilege to be a part of an organization that touches so many lives around the world.”

Feeling inspired to volunteer? There are lots of ways you can get involved with Rise Against Hunger — like hosting a meal packaging event, volunteering locally at one of our warehouses, donating and more. Find the engagement opportunity that is the best fit for you here!

Interested in learning more?
Our team is ready to help!

To find out more about meal packaging and how to organize your own event, fill out the form and a Rise Against Hunger team member will contact you to start planning. If you’ve connected with our team or filled out this form previously, no need to submit it again. A Rise Against Hunger team member will be in touch soon!
 

Perfect for all kinds of organizations:

  • Corporations
  • Civic & Service Clubs
  • Communities of Faith
  • Colleges & Universities

About the Author

Hannah Payne is the Public Relations & Communications Manager at Rise Against Hunger. She facilitates communication between Rise Against Hunger and the media.

Strength, Stability And Hope

The gift that filled Nelly’s table.

“We were yielding very little, and the crops could not sustain us the whole year,” Nelly remembers. As a mother of seven and a farmer with two decades of experience, the stress of inconsistent yields was all-consuming. A poor harvest not only strained her family financially, but also limited their own meals to just two a day. Their story reflects that of many in their fishing and farming village near a lake in the Karonga district of northern Malawi. Here, heavy rainfall makes conventional farming methods nearly impossible. The entire village is, quite literally, saturated in food insecurity — a reality that leaves families struggling to survive season after season without a dependable source of nourishment.

In 2019, Nelly began participating in Harvesting Prosperity and Resilience, a sustainable agriculture project implemented by Rise Against Hunger in partnership with the Foundation for Community Support Services (FOCUS). The project works with 3,100 smallholder farmers in Malawi’s Karonga and Mzimba districts to strengthen food and nutrition security by improving production methods, nutrition practices and household income.

Just one year later, Nelly was ready to expand the variety of crops on her farm. What land once only produced maize began to flourish with sesame, cowpeas, rice and groundnuts during the rainy season (summer), as well as maize and vegetables during the dry season (winter). Through climate-smart agriculture training, she learned new techniques like manure making, pit planting and mulching, crop rotation and intercropping. Equipped with these tools, Nelly’s farm began to thrive.

After the 2023–2024 growing season, she sold enough produce to purchase an ox cart. Her harvests in 2024-2025 season yielded over 500 pounds of crops, including 22 bags of groundnuts, seven bags of maize, 12 tins of sesame and three bags of rice. With this surplus, she was able to invest in a motorbike, which she now uses to transport African doughnuts (mandasi) that she cooks and sells — creating yet another source of income for her family.

The transformation reaches far beyond her finances. Nelly now has the stability to provide for her husband and children. “I am able to eat different food types, pay school fees for my children and fulfill the visions that I have made with my family,” she beams. “I am now sleeping peacefully without any fears of food or paying school fees for the children.”

Her leadership has also grown. Today, Nelly serves as a leader in the Harvesting Prosperity and Resilience project, teaching other farmers in her district to adopt climate-resilient, labor-saving practices. By sharing her knowledge, she is multiplying her impact — empowering her neighbors to experience the same transformation she has achieved.

Across Nelly’s community, food and economic security are on the rise. Lombani, a government extension officer for the region, explains, “I can see the community is being transformed in the sense that in the area, there is food, income and nutrition security. Development is also happening at the household level.”

Nelly reflects on what it means to invest in holistic programs that address the root causes of hunger: “We are now healthy people. Children are going to school after eating their breakfast, having high yields and different types of crops due to conservation agriculture practices. With the support from the project, we have food, and we can access other food items from the market after selling our produce.”

This is the gift that fills: a future full of stability, strength and hope. It fills tables with food, families with security and communities with the resources to thrive. It’s an investment in futures rooted in resilience and hope.