Saturday Essential Services Operations Intern

Saturday Essential Services Operations Intern

Food Pantry, Clothes Closet, and Warehouse Operations

Onsite, Unpaid 16-Week Internship — Saturdays Only, 6:00 AM–12:30 PM

Sacred Heart Community Service is seeking two dependable, community-minded individuals for a 16-Saturday unpaid internship in the Essential Services Department. The internship offers practical experience in food-pantry and clothes-closet operations, warehouse logistics, volunteer coordination, food handling, workplace safety, and nonprofit human services.

Interns rotate through the stations that support Sacred Heart's Saturday food-pantry and clothes-closet operations. At each station, interns first observe and receive instruction, then practice the responsibilities under supervision. Once an intern demonstrates the necessary skills, they may be assigned to lead a station, with the onsite Warehouse Manager remaining responsible for overall safety and operations.

Saturday activities support staff and volunteers and do not include direct interaction with members or clients. Interns supplement the work of employees and volunteers; they do not replace paid staff or positions, and Saturday operations can function without them.

For more than 62 years, Sacred Heart Community Service has worked to address poverty in Santa Clara County by meeting immediate basic needs, providing tools for long‑term self‑sufficiency, and engaging the broader community in service and advocacy.

• Follow a written weekly rotation schedule covering food‑pantry, clothes‑closet, warehouse, and volunteer‑support functions
• Learn safe practices for working in a warehouse and food‑distribution environment
• Learn how food, clothing, donations, equipment, and supplies move through Essential Services operations
• Learn how dignity, compassion, and respect guide the delivery of essential services
• Complete food‑handling and sanitation training before sorting produce or handling food
• Complete equipment‑specific instruction, supervised practice, and a competency evaluation before independently operating approved powered equipment
• Receive regular feedback and coaching from the Warehouse Manager
• Complete a final skills and safety evaluation

Interns rotate through all Saturday operational stations, which may include:

• Produce sorting and bagging
• Shelf‑stable food bagging
• Frozen‑food packing and staging
• Donation receiving and sorting
• Clothes sorting and organization
• Warehouse inventory and supply staging
• Other food‑pantry or clothes‑closet stations as assigned

After receiving instruction and demonstrating the required skills, an intern may coordinate a station's day‑to‑day workflow under the Warehouse Manager's supervision. SHCS staff retain responsibility for station safety and overall operations.

Station setup and support

• Prepare and organize volunteer workstations before activities begin
• Stock stations with food, clothing, bags, carts, pallets, signage, equipment, and other supplies
• Explain station procedures to volunteers after receiving appropriate instruction
• Monitor and replenish station supplies throughout the shift
• Respond to operational and supply requests from staff and volunteer leaders
• Help maintain an efficient, respectful workflow

Food pantry and clothes closet operations

• Sort produce and other packaged or unpackaged food according to SHCS food‑handling and sanitation procedures
• Assist with bagging and staging shelf‑stable and frozen food
• Sort, organize, and stage donated clothing and household items
• Help keep food‑pantry and clothes‑closet areas orderly and accessible
• Follow procedures that preserve the quality and dignity of items distributed to community members

Warehouse logistics

• Move food, clothing, pallets, bins, and supplies between storage and staging areas
• Assist with receiving, organizing, and relocating donated food and supplies
• Organize inventory to support a safe, efficient warehouse
• Operate approved electric pallet jacks or other equipment only after completing required training and demonstrating safe operation
• Follow all age restrictions, safety requirements, and SHCS equipment…