Community Servings

I cannot overstate how much I love visiting with and doing volunteer work at Community Servings! Going the day after tomorrow, in fact. I volunteer in the kitchen several times a year (I live fairly far away so I can't do it more often, sadly) and have also completed a holiday basket for the last 9 years, as well. Every time we volunteer, I'm struck again by the depth of love and caring that this organization pours into the community. Sometimes I even get a little teary, thinking of all of the folks for whom good nutrition is such a key element in their battles against terrible diseases- and how good it must feel to have someone who cares and helps. That a group cares enough to feed our neighbors and friends in our communities around Boston is a true testament that there is still much good in the world and many good people. All of the employees and staff of Community Servings are so wonderful to work with as well, especially Milton, aka Great Chef Pierre, who I have been seeing in the kitchen for the last 10 years or so. We always talk about his family and he's such a character and a nice person, to boot! Three cheers for Community Servings!

The number of people to whom this wonderful organization "delivers" is immense. From the critically ill it delivers meals and caring to every single day, to the people they deliver hope and opportunity to through that thing called "work", to the volunteers to whom it delivers fulfillment and to its employees through whom it delivers its mission, Community Servings is an invaluable organization to the communities it serves. The place is pure magic! Ken D.

My wife and I started doing deliveries for Community Servings about a year ago and we absolutely love it! The staff are all so welcoming and just all around warm people. We truly look forward to seeing them for our shifts. Community Servings is an incredible organization that is very well run and organized and has many great programs and volunteer opportunities, I'm honored to be a part of it.

This is an awesome place to volunteer. People from all backgrounds help out at the kitchen, but everyone definitely acts as one family. I always feel welcomed. I work sometimes on the weekdays, but mainly on Saturdays. It is one of the only few things that can get me out of my bed on Sat mornings. I help in the front and back kitchen, either prepping food for the chefs or packaging food to be delivered. If you are looking for an easy going place with positive atmosphere, dedication to food and serving the community and those in need, and try something different, definitely go to Community Servings.

Community Servings is an amazing organization. When I first moved to Boston, I came in a couple times to volunteer and almost immediately the staff there took me in like family! The staff are warm, generous, kind people who are truly passionate about providing the best quality services to their clients and community. The kitchen staff, especially the "Great Chef" Milford and Manager Tony, have always taken the time to teach me about the kitchen and share a quick laugh. The staff have created a positive and comforting environment that always puts a smile on my face. Generally, I have helped prepare and package meals as well as volunteered with special fundraising events. This year I was able to participate in their fundraiser Pie In the Sky. I was able to help prepare pies that would be used in the fundraiser- best experience to date! Overall, I am impressed by how "lean" the organization is (90 cents for every dollar goes to services for clients) and how they are able to deliver to such a wide area (from Lawrence to Brockton.) I have and will continue to encourage others to volunteer (especially on Saturdays!) because every experience I have had with Community Servings has been fun and fulfilling.

It's no wonder so many people enjoy volunteering at Community Servings. This organization is well run, and does an incredible job making all their volunteers feel welcome. Volunteers come in as strangers and quickly become friends. The staff and fellow volunteers at Community Servings actually make the work fun! The mere fact that many people have being volunteering at Community Servings for years is a reflection of how great it is.

I have been a Saturday volunteer for approximately 4 years now. I am part of a regular contingent of volunteers who have dubbed themselves the "Slice and Dice Crew" We show up every Saturday we can to help prepare the hundreds of meals that are delivered on a daily basis. Everyone from administration to kitchen staff is dedicated to the mission of the organization. There is never a Saturday where I show up where there is not much to do. Milford Jenkins otherwise known as "The Great Chef" should be given much recognition for the ongoing an continued draw and dedication of the vounteers. I think many of us return because of the respect and love we have for Chef. The kitchen is a well oiled machine where everything that needs to get done always done and everyone feels appreciated. We also are confident that the dollars we donate go directly to the clients and not to pad someones salary!I have particiapted in the Pie in the Sky Fundraiser for the past 3 years selling pies at Thanksgiving one of the organizations major fundraisers. Everyone always likes pie and .97 cents on the dollar goes directly to he client and everyone likes to hear that! Finally, one expereince for me sums it all. It was a usual Saturday of food prep. We were finished with our jobs and sat down at lunch. Chef weekly has us all introduce ourselves and say why we are ther. We were going around the room when a woman replied I am here to say thank you. You were there for me when my husband passed and I will always be grateful. What else can I say?

Community Servings is a great place to volunteer. The organization does amazing things for those in need. In terms of the actual volunteer experience, everyone involved is very friendly and welcoming. It is a tight knit group of people that are interested in the well being of others around them.

I absolutely love my Community Servings family! Everyone is super warm and arrive ready to serve through chopping, cleaning, packing etc even on cold Saturday mornings. I am so blessed to be a part of this family.

Community Servings is an organization with a large heart of gold. Their service to the needs of people with life-threatening illness is amazing and their respect and treatment of their volunteers is incredible. You feel welcomed with open arms, the energy level in the kitchen is always high, you work hard but with a true feeling of group effort and the people in charge want you to truly feel "a part" of their world/environment. Could not think of a more positive volunteer experience. I volunteered for the first time over five years ago and am disappointed when my own life demands interfere with my ability to get back there on a regular basis.

Community Servings provided a wonderful free informational workshop for the patrons at the Grove Hall Branch Library on December 1, 2011. This interactive workshop, called "Eating Healthy on a Budget," provided valuable and relevant nutritional information for those who attended. In today's difficult economy, being informed is crucial for people when it comes to providing their families with healthy and affordable meals. We want to thank Community Servings for this outstanding program and for their service to our community!

I`m a recent graduate of Community Servings. These are some of the best friends i`ll ever meet. Susan, Brad, Fred, Rosario, Mara, Milford, keisha, Alfredo, and the whole CS staff. I love you all. There are so many people who need this program. The word needs to be spread about the company, and the wonderful people who run it. Thanks for all your support and help sincerly, NathanielDix

There's no place I would rather be on a Saturday than in the Community Servings kitchen, helping to chop vegetables, package meals, ladle soup into containers, or assist with any of the other kitchen tasks that need to get done in order to make sure that Community Servings' 750 clients get fed that week. No matter what task I'm performing, I always feel useful and valued as a volunteer. More than that, though, I feel welcome. The people at Community Servings have become like a second family to me. There is such a feeling of positive energy and good will at CS, and I always leave there smiling. Not only am I doing something good for the community, but I feel like something good is being done for me. I cannot recommend this place enough!

I have volunteered with Community Servings for many years and hands down they are the best non-profit around. The staff embraces volunteers and makes them feel like the are part of the organization's family. They are comsumate professionals and really take care to respect volunteer's time and talent and show great appreciation for all of the volunteer efforts. Community Serving provides a variety of opportunities from working in the kitchen, delivering meals, serving on event committees, etc. that anyone can find an activity that suits them.

My girlfriend and I deliver meals one Saturday per month, with an extra week once in a while. We deliver to about 5-8 clients and have a very good time doing this. The clients are appreciative of the good food we bring, and the clients and ourselves enjoy seeing each other. We are very happy to assist and are left with good feelings each time.

There may be others that seek to do what Community Servings does but this organization has been doing it very professionally and with great care for its clients for nearly two decades now, extending its reach across the Greater Boston area increasingly each year.

Just $5 provides a snack, lunch and dinner for a critically ill client and that person's family. One need only visit Community Servings in Jamaica Plain, MA to see the care and skill they bring literally to the table. The volunteer cooks under the very talented Chef Brad Stevens do an outstanding job and the programs - Pie in the Sky and LifeSavor - engage the restaurant community from which this group originally was formed twice a year. Community Servings makes caring and serving easy! I have a northeast trade publication for the foodservice industry, Foodservice East, and try to support these efforts in as many ways possible to encourage operators to join in their efforts.

My younger sister volunteered at Community Servings as part of a high school requirement. My mother also tagged along. For years I was hearing about how great CS was, so when I was looking for a new volunteer opportunity I decided to give it a try. I have been volunteering in the kitchen for almost two years. Milford "Great Chef" Jenkins is truly one of a kind and enhances everyone's volunteering experience. The staff is wonderful and everyone is so dedicated to CS and serving their clients. They are very flexible with regards to the amount of time and when you volunteer. A few months ago I became a Volunteer Ambassador so I can officially spread the word about how great CS is.

You will not find a more organized non-profit who can combine efficiency with sustainability, customer service, and empathy like Community Servings. There are a lot of non profits doing great work but Community Servings really comprehensively does its basic work flawlessly but then incorporates programming, scaling up, quality assurance, and quality improvement throughout its programs. They effectively use social media and are obviously integrated into the community. I am so impressed with the organization and their staff everytime I am there.