VEAP provides an incredibly necessary community service. I go to VEAP once a month to get food and…read morethey provide "an abundance of groceries" absolutely free. Fish fillets, ground beef, fruits, vegetables, grains, bread, canned foods, frozen foods, sauces, pastries, butter, even sometimes toilet paper, paper towels and napkins. I'm not sure how they've managed to grow to become such an inspirational and clearly imperative service to the community but having been here in Minnesota for more than 20 years may explain it in part. It also requires dedicated and responsible volunteers that work with a smile for everyone that comes through the door. I'd give VEAP 10 Stars or more if I could. We get between 15 and 30 full, well balanced meals for 2 people every month! As an aside, I don't believe any of VEAP's policies could be considered overreach and if you use VEAP and are amazed at what you get for free and feel that VEAP makes you feel deserving and proud, take the time to leave a review!

The individual who assisted me was amazing. She understood my needs and assisted with just that. I…read morehighly recommend their services!

Awesome experience! A perfect venue for a fun team building session or networking event for large…read moregroups, while simultaneously providing a service for our community. Location was inconvenient for me as it was a 45 minute drive, but the friendly and helpful staff, combined with their large and beautiful facilities made it worthwhile. Second Harvest Heartland was easy to work with. Their online reservation system made it easy to see which time slots could accommodate us. We were even able to use their large meeting room space to host a 2 hour lunch and networking event prior to our volunteering session. The large room included 2 screens for projecting presentations from your laptop, sound system with microphone and a strong and free WiFi. All of this was of great value to our group! As one of the leaders of Asian Professionals Alliance in MN (APAM), we brought together 70 volunteers from across APAM member companies: 3M, Best Buy, Cargill, General Mills, Medtronic, Target & US Bank. Not only was this venue large enough to accommodate our large group, they were so organized, gave us great instruction and constantly kept the workplace clean, comfortable. They had 6 computers at the entrance for each individual to register for the event. Half of our group boxed care packages for senior citizens while the other half worked to inspect and package 40 pound bags of potatoes for food shelves across the country. My favorite part is that they share the results of your volunteer efforts at the end of your shift. I would absolutely recommend this place for volunteering sessions - for individuals, small groups and large groups!

I had a lot of fun volunteering at second harvest. They are very organized. It's a lot of physical…read morework, but you get a lot done for a worthy cause. I've done two shifts so far and there are a few different projects depending on their needs. So it's not the same thing every time.

Such a great organization! They take donations (housewares, furniture, small…read moreelectronics/appliances, decor, etc.) and provide them to people to who are transitioning out of homelessness. We worked a special shift via Surly Gives a Damn, sorting hangers. But they do take groups of 5 or more to do projects such as putting furniture together, sorting utensils and linen and more. There's always work to be done. Shifts are 2-3 hrs long. The work was very chill. You got to pick what you wanted to do as well as they were very accommodating for example if you needed to sit while working or needed to take breaks. Diana was running things and she was such a great host! Made us feel welcomed & made sure to tell us about all the opportunities they have to volunteer and give back. She also offered tours of the warehouse after the shift was over. She said she's always looking for new volunteers, so if you are looking for opportunities, please check them out!!! They have 3 locations- Bloomington, Roseville & Plymouth-opening very soon.

We scheduled a pick up with the Epilepsy Foundation and they took nothing! We donated to their…read moreorganization, or tried to, because a flyer was included with our Richfield citywide garage sale information. ALL of our items were listed as being accepted online, including six bags of worn-once/new-with-tags clothing from Express. Some guy showed up and picked through a couple of the boxes of household items and then got back in his truck and left without taking one thing. There was no help when we called the organization. We wasted time and energy getting that stuff put out in our driveway just the way they wanted it. We could have donated to a reputable organization. Beware, the Epilepsy Foundation only wants to SHOP through your stuff for some new items. They are NOT actually willing to take all donations. It's a major waste of time and effort to schedule with them.

The Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota is a great organization that helps individuals affected with…read moreseizures and epilepsy. There are fun events to help connect people as well as out reach activities. It is great to have a place to meet others and get educational tools.

What a fantastic organization. I have volunteered at Second Harvest on several occasions. In…read moreaddition to being organized and easy to work with, they encourage fun. Volunteerism at Second Harvest typically involves labeling and packaging food for individual consumption. No matter what size group I have brought to this location, they always have enough work to keep us busy for 2+ hours. Yesterday we sorted through pallets full of potatoes and created five-pound bags for distribution to families in need. In a two-hour span, a team of 40 volunteers created enough packs to make nearly 7,000 meals. That is true impact. During the process, the Second Harvest team efficiently kept us in supply of the necessary products and played some entertaining music that made us forget we were trading desk jobs for manual labor. Exercise, fun, and community benefit all in one event! At the end of our volunteer event, the staff provided statistics to help us measure the impact of our time. They also explained their broad reach and how many lives Second Harvest touches on a regular basis. I am so thankful that organizations like this exist and that they truly do all possible to make life a bit better for those who are suffering. To be a part of it is both humbling and incredibly satisfying. Whether you have a group of corporate volunteers or are a retiree looking to spend some time helping others, Second Harvest is a great partner organization.

My eyes were opened yesterday, when our company decided to volunteer at Second Harvest Heartland…read moreService Center for our annual employee event. I can't remember all the stats, but I do remember them saying one person in ten goes hungry in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. And to think how much I eat, how much we as a country/state/community waste food. They can make a dollar stretch, and with so many causes looking for money, this is one that really can help out a lot of people. We had about 30 people from our office, but there were two other companies volunteering. Most of us went into the 'clean room', where we donned our lunch lady hairnets and surgical gloves. We started bagging pasta, moved on to bag granola cereal, and finished with bagging rice. Some of our group as well as the other companies bagged potatoes. In our three hours of work, we roughly filled over 400 pounds of pasta, 500 pounds of cereal, and 800 pounds of rice. I think the potatoes were in the thousand-pound range. In all, we did enough work that would provide over 8,000 meals to families of four. As a company, we bonded, and I got to learn a bit more about some of my coworkers. It was a great team building event and while we had fun, this activity serves a greater good. I would do this again in a heartbeat and I highly recommend it to companies, groups of friends, or if you feel like you want to 'pay it forward'. Pictures say thousands of words. Just look at all these happy volunteers. It says it all. Hopefully they will get the August album up soon so you can see our picture. Second Harvest and the families who receive help from them are very grateful, too. www.2harvest.org/volunteerphotos

I came here to share my donation experience and how easy it was to coordinate with the staff at JC,…read morethey also helped me unload about 15-20 bags that I had gathered from a drive I was doing for the holidays. Being Born and raised in St Paul I am shocked I had no idea this non profit existed and was pleased to stumble upon it online while looking for places to donate. I love the concept of being able to have a dignified shopping experience for those in need hence why I chose JC to donate to. But I am disheartened by the reviews I am reading from folks in the community as I am biracial myself and have a biracial family. I truly hope that a Christian based non profit is not discriminating against people of color or mistreating those that are in need. I encourage you to listen to those expressing their experiences and concerns and for JC to do better moving forward.

Been donating there for years. and have seen many people receive great services by their team. I…read morethink this is an amazing organization that provides a really wonderful, humanizing program to a lot of people, and it's hard to see these other reviews. It's my hope that people continue to provide them with new and gently used clothes, homewares, makeup, haircare, and other goods that help people feel like the wonderful people of our community that they are. Everyone deserves some time away to shop for the things they need or better yet, the things they want, for themselves or their friends or family. Please give to this organization and drop in to see what they are all about. A store that operates for free for people to "buy" what they need and feel human, when so many people make them feel second class...this is a model many other organizations should adopt.

With the help of Neighborhood House I was able to stay in my home. And am so very grateful and hope…read moreI can be in a place to give back to the community and be there for folks when they were there for me- Thank you!

What a great organization helping out people!…read more Over 15,000 people come here each year for support including adult education, food shelves, child care, literacy, financial literacy, child literacy and much more. Helping people so the community thrives.

Had such a great time volunteering here with SGAD!! I've volunteered with Surly at the Roseville…read morelocation before doing a hanger sort. This location was a bit different. We did a napkin and placemat sort/pairing, some people got to match the sets to a set of dishes so when people come to grab them they can have a whole set. This location seemed a bit tighter space wise than the other location but it worked out for us spreading out. Staff were nice and helpful when we had questions.

I would tell them not to turn down wonderful pieces of furniture. I had a beautiful Bernhardt sofa…read morethat barely was used and they turned it down with a Thomas ville oak dining room table six chairs. They don't bother to even look at pictures and then ask you to pay for moving. With so many people without homes or furniture, how can they do that.