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We're looking forward to seeing you in our gardens on Virginia Road
and at the Old Manse from April through October, when we are open to
volunteers of all ages and abilities.
The Board and staff of Gaining Ground are very grateful for the recent
outpouring of interest in volunteering to help us grow food for hunger relief.
Without your hard work, we would not be able to donate over 20,000 lbs
of nutritious produce annually to people in need. We have a small farm
and a small staff—we really could not accomplish our mission without your help!
We have made a few changes to our scheduling system to keep volunteer
opportunities open to as many people as possible, and to ensure that all who
volunteer at Gaining Ground continue to have a rewarding experience.
We hope these changes will enable us to serve more volunteers and to
grow as much food as our land is willing to give us. With those
goals in mind, we ask that you follow these new guidelines for booking
volunteer visits:
Farm Volunteer Hours (April through October)
| Monday | closed |
| Tuesday | 9am-12pm, 1-4pm |
| Wednesday | 9am-12pm |
| Thursday | 9am-12pm, 1-4pm |
| Friday | 9am-12pm, 1-4pm |
| Saturday | 9am-12pm, 1-4pm |
| Sunday | 9am-12pm, 1-4pm for groups only (6-12 people per group) |
For All Volunteers:
Schedule by Email—Please contact the office BY EMAIL to schedule a volunteer visit.
The address is
.
Confirm Promptly—When you are offered a time to volunteer, you need to confirm by email
within 24 hours or the time may be assigned to someone else.
Please Notify Us If You Have to Cancel—Please notify us 48 hours before your scheduled visit
if you must cancel. When volunteers don't come as scheduled, it's hard for our farm staff to plan
the day's work and prevents us from offering the time to other volunteers. So try not to cancel. But
if you have to, tell us as soon as possible.
Schedule Visits—We can no longer accept drop-in volunteers. Drop-ins make smooth production
difficult for the farm staff. Please don't bring along friends or children who have not scheduled visits.
Under 16?—If you are over 16, please email the office yourself rather than having a parent do it
for you. If you are under 16, you must be accompanied by an adult during your volunteer visit.
Please Sign In—Each time you arrive at the farm, be sure to sign into our Volunteer Log, which
is our record of who comes to the farm.
For Individual Volunteers:
Don't Wait—Please schedule your visit(s) at least 48 hours in advance. We can't accommodate last-minute bookings.
Farm Schedule—Farm visits will be for three hours or less, either between 9am and 12pm or between 1pm and 4pm. We close for lunch from 12 to 1pm to give our staff a needed break.
Individual Volunteer Limits—We offer a maximum of ten visits per season (April through October) to each individual volunteer.
For All Groups:
Group Limits—Group size is limited. We are a small farm with limited facilities (parking, toilets, shelter from the weather). Please respect these limits.
Larger Groups on Saturdays—On weekdays and Sundays, an adult group (high school and up) may consist of 12 or fewer volunteers. On Saturdays, maximum group size is 16 adults.
Details on Group Visits—All members of a group should plan to arrive together and finish together. If there are changes in the number of your group, please email the office at least 24 hours before your visit so that the farm staff can plan accordingly. We ask that all groups schedule their visit at least one week ahead. We invite one visit per month per group. And please make sure that someone in your group confirms the visit (by email) 24 hours ahead.
For School Groups (elementary & middle school):
Group Size—We can accommodate up to a total of 32 (including students and adults) in a school group. Everyone in the group is expected to participate in farm work.
Group Schedule—School groups and classes may schedule a maximum of one visit per month, enabling us to offer the volunteer experience to a broad set of school groups.
For Disabilities/Special Needs Groups:
Group Size—To make sure that all farm volunteers receive the attention they need during their visit, groups of volunteers with disabilities/special needs may consist of 10 or fewer individuals, and may schedule a maximum of six visits per season.
Volunteers in Wheelchairs—Please be sure to tell our office how many volunteers will be in wheelchairs.
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