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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

POSITION SUMMARY

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.

About Sacred Heart Community Service

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.

What You'll Learn

Over the 16 weeks, interns will:

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

Station Rotations

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.

Responsibilities

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 policies; interns under 18 may not operate the stacker

Safety and cleanup

Participate in required safety reviews and follow all warehouse-safety procedures

Keep work areas clean, organized, and hazard-free

Store equipment and supplies properly

Assist with station breakdown, cleanup, and end-of-shift warehouse organization

Immediately report hazards, damaged equipment, injuries, or unsafe conditions to the Warehouse Manager.

Completion Requirements

To earn a certificate of completion, interns must:

Attend at least 13 of the 16 scheduled Saturdays

Participate in the required station rotations and training

Follow SHCS safety, food-handling, conduct, and attendance expectations

Demonstrate satisfactory performance on the final skills and safety evaluation

Required Qualifications

At least 17 years old at the start of the internship; applicants under 18 must provide written permission from a parent or legal guardian

Available Saturdays, 6:00 AM-12:30 PM, and able to attend at least 13 of the 16 Saturdays

Dependable, punctual, and able to follow verbal and written instructions

Willing to learn about food-pantry, clothes-closet, warehouse, volunteer, and nonprofit operations, and to rotate through all assigned stations

Able to work respectfully and collaboratively with staff and volunteers

Committed to treating people and donated items with dignity, compassion, and respect

Willing to follow food-handling, sanitation, equipment, and workplace-safety procedures

Able to provide and wear closed-toe, nonslip shoes for every shift (SHCS provides all other required personal protective equipment).

Physical requirements. Interns must be able to perform the essential physical functions of the role, with or without reasonable accommodation: prolonged standing and walking; frequent bending, pushing, pulling, and reaching; lifting up to 30 pounds independently; and lifting up to 50 pounds with assistance.

Preferred Qualifications

Previous experience is preferred but not required - training is provided.

Warehouse, logistics, retail, food-pantry, clothes-closet, inventory, or food-distribution experience

Interest in nonprofit organizations, community service, human services, logistics, supply-chain operations, or volunteer coordination

Strong organizational and communication skills

Comfort working in a busy, changing environment

Bilingual English/Spanish skills

Supervision

The intern reports to the onsite Essential Services Warehouse Manager, who provides training, supervision, weekly coaching, station assignments, equipment authorization, and the final skills and safety evaluation. Interns may also receive task direction from designated SHCS staff and trained volunteer leaders. An SHCS employee remains onsite at all times and retains responsibility for overall warehouse and station operations.

Compensation

This is an unpaid, voluntary internship. Interns do not receive wages, employee benefits, transportation reimbursement, meals, academic credit, stipends, or other compensation. Participants receive supervised practical experience, training, professional mentoring, feedback, a certificate upon successful completion, and the opportunity to contribute to Sacred Heart's mission of building a community free from poverty. Completion of the internship does not guarantee or create an entitlement to employment with Sacred Heart Community Service.

REPORTING RELATIONSHIP

The Saturday Essential Services Operations Intern reports directly to the Essential Services Warehouse Manager.

Application and Selection Process

Applicants must complete an internship application and a reference check.

Selected participants must sign an acknowledgment confirming that the internship:

Is voluntary and unpaid

Is limited to 16 Saturdays

Does not create an expectation or entitlement to wages, benefits, or future employment

Does not guarantee a paid position with Sacred Heart Community Service

Sacred Heart Community Service is an Equal Opportunity workplace and Affirmative Action Employer. SHCS is committed to building a team with diverse ethnic, cultural, and experiential backgrounds. We especially encourage applications from members of historically underrepresented and marginalized communities, people of color, women, people with disabilities, veterans, and LGBTQ+ people. SHCS prohibits discrimination and harassment and provides equal employment opportunities to employees and applicants without regard to race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, medical condition or genetic information, veteran status, national origin, disability, marital status, or any other protected status. SHCS complies with the spirit and letter of all applicable laws and regulations.