Volunteering at Fallfest

The Ferry Building is just across the street

For second year in a row I volunteered for Meals for Wheels of San Francisco at one of its annual fundraising events, Fallfest. Over the years I have volunteered for countless non-profit organizations and for various social causes. If you love food, Fallfest has to be the best volunteer event in the area. It is "a celebration of the Bay Area’s best in food and wine. Leading restaurateurs, winemakers, mixologists, and epicurean artisans join together for an inspiring day of premier wine and food tasting, chef demonstrations, cocktail competitions, and panel discussions. It all takes place outdoors at Justin Herman Plaza, which is transformed for the day into a European-style marketplace, taking full advantage of the season’s gorgeous weather and the waterfront’s beautiful views."

My shift at the Silent Auction tent started at 2:30 until 5 p.m. I arrived at the event around 1p.m. to enjoy the food sampling as a guest. Not all volunteer organizers are as generous as Fallfest. I have volunteered for other culinary events that absolutely wouldn't allow volunteers to taste any food at the events even as the events were closing down.  In addition to tasting countless amazing samplers, I also won an one-hour docent led tour at the Marin Mammal Center by playing their Spinning the Wheel!

At the Silent Auction tent, I immediately recognized a few patrons from last year. Once again, they were generously bidding on various items that benefited Meals for Wheels. The auction ended at 3 p.m.  We quickly gathered all the auction items and lists to compile the list of bidding winners. We had 30 minutes to put all the winners' names on the charts for them to claim their items and pay. I was assigned to guard and pull out the winning gift certificates as the winners came forward. It was fun to interact with some of San Francisco's nicest people. I shall be back next fall!