Healthy Lincoln County staff member Michaela Stone and volunteer Diane Newcomb process donated veggies for share tables. (Photo courtesy Leifa Gordon)
With summer officially here, many organizations and businesses are stepping into their busy season, and the food security programs at Healthy Lincoln County are no exception. With summer meals kicking off this week, farms starting to get in touch about gleaning opportunities, our SNAP booth at the Damariscotta Farmers Market in full swing, Grow-A-Row participants dropping off extras from their gardens, and share tables expanding for the season, we are happily feeling that summer rush.
With all these projects, we partner with collaborators in the community, from farms to pantries to businesses. And importantly, we are joined by a crew of volunteers who are just as passionate about getting nutritious food into the community as we are.
Some of these volunteers join us for a day here and there, driving summer meals around Lincoln County in our beloved van, Lulu the Lunch Wagon, or meeting for apple gleaning at Biscay Orchards in the fall. Others meet us weekly to sort and pack vegetables for the share tables. Still others come to pick up those veggies and bring them to various spots around the community for all of us to access.
We truly could not do the work without each of these volunteers.
That being said, we will always welcome new folks to our crew! Wanting something indoors? Ask about joining “The Hub” volunteers and processing donated produce.
Want to get outside? Ask about the Lincoln County Gleaners! We have recently started our weekly Tuesday morning trips to Goranson Farm and would love some company in the fields. We also will have more one-time gleaning opportunities coming up this summer.
While we have filled our volunteer positions on the mobile route for summer meals (thank you, all who signed up!), we do have a few other volunteer spots open. If you are interested in picking up meals in your own car at Medomak Middle School kitchen and transporting them to a site, such as CLC YMCA, we would love to talk to you! Even just signing on for a few trips can help immensely with getting meals to kids over the summer.
It may seem like this week’s column is just part bragging about all the cool things we get to do this summer, and part volunteer recruitment. While that may be true, the point I am trying to get to here is a huge thank you.
Thank you to the pantries, businesses, and providers for your collaboration with us and for all the hard work you do week after week.
Thank you to the farms who continue to support food access along with everything else that you do.
And, maybe saving the best for last, thank you to our volunteers for sharing your time, energy, and experience with us and the community!
If you are interested in any of the above opportunities, please reach out to Michaela Stone at mstone@healthylincolncounty.org.
