Volunteers needed for gleaning: Wednesdays weekly in Oxford
August 2, 2023 - November 1, 2023
Free
The fresh fruits or vegetables you harvest at a gleaning, will reach the tables of hungry families in your community within 24-48 hours. Your efforts matter and share great nutrition AND hope for a better tomorrow.
Dear Southwest Ohio Faith Leaders,
My organization is a gleaning organization. We have been working with Miami University’s Institute for Food farm since fall of 2019, gleaning on a weekly basis throughout the harvest season. They have been a wonderful and generous partner, and the vast majority of their donations have remained within Butler County, distributed by TOPSS Pantry, Army of Kindness, and JEE Foods. TOPSS and Army of Kindness are this year’s recipients.It is a rare opportunity to be invited to a farm on a weekly basis, as the MUIFF has done. (Most of our gleanings are one-off events that arise when growers find they have a surplus that needs to be harvested before they plow it under.) Lately, we are having a particular challenge finding enough volunteers to show up, each week, as many of our past regulars are otherwise engaged, this season, and most students are away for the summer. I am reaching out to request your help in spreading the word about this wonderful weekly volunteer opportunity right in Oxford. I’m attaching a flier for posting or sharing electronically. Folks can also register as a volunteer at https://endhunger.org/ohio/, then find the event dates they want to sign up for. (Please note that we ask folks to sign up via our volunteer platform. It’s important that no one just shows up unannounced at an event, in consideration of the farm and the growers. We send specific instructions for where and when to meet, and any other requirements, the evening prior to each gleaning.)We are looking to fill up to 10 volunteer spots in a 3-hour shift on Wednesday mornings, 9-12. We are currently scheduled into November. The food we glean is some of the freshest available, and gets distributed to individuals to rarely otherwise have access to it. Our volunteers love the work and their time on the farm. I am more than happy to field any questions you have about this, via email or phone (see below).
Interfaith Cincinnati
