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Want
to Serve your Community and
Know
Your Farmers?
Volunteer at
Rippling Waters Organic Farm!
Did
you know . . .
-According to the Good Shepherd Food Bank, 10% of Maine families experience food
insecurity each year.? This means that at some point during the year, food
was either
not affordable, not available, or not adequate for sustaining good health.
-Right in your community, on the banks of the Saco River, the people at Rippling
Waters Farm are growing organic produce, seedlings, and bedding plants, and
working hard to Share the Harvest with families in need?
The farm runs the Saco River Food Connections Project
to increase food security in the region.
We need your help to reach the Saco River Food Connections’ goal of donating
20,000 pounds of our nutritious, delicious food to the emergency food system.
Last year, community groups and individuals provided over 1000 hours of
service, enabling us to give away almost $5,000 worth of food. Let's double it this year!
What
Will You Do?
The
volunteer opportunities with Rippling Waters Farm are related to our various
projects, as described below.
All volunteer work is closely supervised by our knowledgeable staff and
you are encouraged to ask us questions while you work.
Task Teams
The members of task teams consistently volunteer and learn the project to be
able to work
independently after a fashion. These teams are:
- the Harvest Team - who come Tuesday and Fridays to help us harvest for our CSA, farmers
markets and wholesale accounts.
-the Perennial Team and
-the Herb Team
come once a week and help us grow perennials and herbs from seeding,
transplanting, and growing.
Food Pantry Day
Some
volunteers want their efforts to feel directly connected to working in the
emergency
 food system.
If this is your case, sign up to work for the Food Pantry Gardening. To
see a list of the food pantries we serve, please click
here. We need consistent volunteers to see this project from seeding, planting,
harvesting and delivering the produce.
This is a Thursday Volunteer job.
 The Community Gardens
Perhaps
you prefer to help us off-farm in one of our community gardens.
They are located at the Steep Falls Elementary School, George E. Jack
Elementary School in Standish, the Stonecrest Senior Garden in Standish, the
Elwell Farms Senior Garden in Buxton, the Porter Community Garden, and probably
a few more before the end of the year.
On-going Farm Work
Then
most of you , want to learn about sustainable, organic gardening.
Then, sign-up and pitch in for these various jobs:
-Produce
Production means
working in the fields, planting, mulching, weeding, and composting.
-Greenhouse
Production means
growing our organic vegetable seedlings and annuals.
The tasks include seeding, transplanting, and organizing plant displays.
-Landscape,
Beautification, & Maintenance.
If
you like weeding perennial gardens, mowing, weed-whacking, pruning then you can
help our farm look its best for our visitors.
Special Talents
Please
let us know of your special talents.
There always seems to be building and artistic projects just waiting to
be done.
Help
Others and Help Yourself
-
In
addition to the good feeling you'll get by helping others, working on the
farm is a rewarding and challenging experience. We believe that
everyone should have the chance to experience the empowerment of growing
their own food!
-
The
more often you come, the more you’ll learn about gardening and raising
food crops.
-
Everyone
eats! So come learn about healthy, sustainable food production.
-
Your
first visit includes a tour and orientation to the farm and our projects.
-
We
will provide monthly workshops, fact sheets, newsletters and recipes.
-
Before
you leave each visit, you are encouraged to enjoy our river site and glean
unsellable produce from the gardens.
-
Virtually
no labor is "unskilled" labor, and trained volunteers are
extremely valuable to us. If you are an individual who is interested
in coming out to the farm on a regular basis, sign up for one of our
on-going tasks and be on a Task Team!
Special Volunteer Opportunities
We
like to hold special volunteer days to attract a large number of volunteers
working together. We may offer tours, workshops, or fun activities on
these days.
Potato
Plantin' Day
One
of our busiest days of the season is Potato Planting Day. In years past,
over thirty people have attended to help us get our potatoes in the ground!. This is a great day to come see what Rippling Waters is all about and lend
a helping hand. This is a family event, so feel free to bring your kids.
After the work's done, take a stroll around the farm and visit the river!
Pitch in, meet
others from your community, and celebrate spring!
Saturday,
April 26,
9:00 am—2:00 pm*
Weed 'n Feed
On this day we're sure the weeds may be
winning and the more hands we have to pull the healthy our gardens will
be. After you have a full morning of weeding, we'll feed you with some
wonderful fresh produce, then you can participate in the "Mushrooming &
Wild Edibles" workshop.
Saturday, July 19, 9:00
a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Rain date Sunday, July 20
Garlic
Planting Day
Help us plant & mulch our
garlic for next year. You'll learn the ins & outs of planting garlic,
different varieties and their uses.
Day TBA, some time in
September.
Potato Diggin' Day
If you helped us plant all those potatoes,
won't you like to help us dig them. We'll be digging the remaining
potatoes that will be distributed to the food pantries for winter storage.
You'll feel great knowing you are contributing to such a worthy cause.
Day TBA, early October
Fall
Clean-up
Help
us prepare our tomato houses for winter, get the greenhouses ready for spring,
and perhaps participate in a greenhouse dance!!!
Saturday,
late
October
Interested?
Questions?
Please
contact Christy McKinnon, our community programs & volunteer manager at
207-642-5161 box 3 or at volunteer.ripplingwaters@gmail .com
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