A hundred and twenty households. A number instead of a line.
A limit per distribution day that opens the evening before. Families join from a phone, see their number and how many are ahead, and volunteers work the list at the table.
Free to start. You can modify all of this in the editor.
Harvest Table Pantry
Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Take a number the night before and come when it's close.
Sound familiar?
Families line up at 6 AM for a 9 AM distribution because it is the only way to be sure
The clipboard at the table is the system. People arrive hours early, with kids, and the 130th household finds out there is nothing left after the wait. The count for the grant report is whatever a volunteer managed to write down in the rain.
What you get
The limits, hours, and questions, already set
This is exactly what the button creates. It is a starting point, not a cage: change any of it in the editor after.
Template
Tuesday distribution
- 120 households per distribution day. The count starts over at 6:00 AM.
- Sign-ups open at 6:00 PM the evening before and close at 11:00 AM on the day, Tuesdays and Thursdays.
- Asks for name, phone, and household size.
- Everyone sees their number and how many are ahead on their own phone.
- The running count is shown, so people know when it is getting close.
- Capacity
- 120 per day
- Resets
- daily at 6:00 AM
- Signups open
- Mon, Wed, 6:00 PM to 11:00 AM the next day
- Form asks for
- Email, Name, Phone, People in your household
- Counter on the form
- Shown
Or by hand
Set it up yourself, step by step
The same values, typed in. About five minutes.
Create the waitlist
Open the "Tuesday distribution" template, change what you like, and press Publish. An emailed code makes it yours and puts it live; nothing is public before that.
Set capacity to 120 per day
In Settings, set the capacity to 120 per day and the reset to daily at 6:00 AM. The count starts over at every reset; nothing is deleted.
Set the opening hours
Under Hours, set signups to open Mon, Wed, 6:00 PM to 11:00 AM the next day. Outside those hours the form shows a closed screen with the next opening time, in the joiner's time zone.
Add the form fields
Email is built in. On the Form tab, add Name (required), Phone, People in your household (required). Labels and help text render as plain text.
Show the counter
In Settings, turn on the counter so the form shows how many spots are left. People join faster when they can see the number.
Publish and share
Click Publish. The Share tab has the hosted link, a QR code, and the script tag or iframe for your site. The submit button reads "Take a number".
FAQ
Questions people here ask
What about people who do not have an email address?
Everyone who joins online needs an email; that is how they get their number and their link. Keep a short paper list at the table for the rest, or let a volunteer join for them with the pantry's own address and a note.
Can we run two distribution days with different limits?
Yes. Make one list per day, each with its own limit and hours, and print a QR code for each. Every plan allows as many lists as you need.
Is the family's information kept private?
It is stored only as long as you choose. Set entries to delete themselves after a week or a month, per list. Nothing is sold or shared.
More community templates
Related
Keep reading
- FeatureOpening hoursWaitlist opening hours, including overnight windows
- For your businessThe distribution line for food banks and nonprofitsA hundred and twenty households on a Tuesday morning, a clothing closet open two afternoons a week, a free clinic with twenty appointments.
- AlternativeGoogle Forms alternativeThe free form builder everyone already has, pressed into service as a waitlist.