Read the essay. Then answer the questions.

The Saturday Shift

1. Last fall I signed up to volunteer at the food bank on Chestnut Avenue because my counselor said the hours would count toward graduation.
2. I expected to spend the morning handing boxes to people, but the first thing the staff taught me was how to sort donations.
3. A crate of canned goods has to be checked one can at a time for dents, rust and expiration dates.
4. The list of items that the warehouse cannot accept were taped to the wall above the sorting table.
5. At first I asked the supervisor about almost every can, which slowed the whole line down.
6. By my third Saturday I could finish a crate in about six minutes without asking anyone.
7. The warehouse was cold, and by noon my fingers were stiff enough that I had trouble writing the tally.
8. What surprised me most was how much food is thrown away for small reasons.
9. A dented can is usually safe, but the food bank cannot hand it out, because a dent can hide a crack in the seam.
10. I understand that rule now, although it bothered me for the first month.
11. The boxes we packed that morning went families living within three miles of the warehouse.
12. I am going back in January, and this time I will be the one training the new volunteers.