It is never too early to start working on donor outreach. Unlike the growing of fruits and vegetables, building relationships with farmers, farmer’s market managers, and property owners have no off-season. Make it a routine goal to attend farmer’s markets, talk with local farmers, and…
Everybody works hard to earn a living and to provide for themselves and others. In terms of a gleaning program, this includes the volunteers in the fields, food banks, and everyone in between. When a farmer has planned a season in advance, purchased from seed,…
Outreach Within the first year of a gleaning program, it is advantageous to send out information to potential collaborating farms during the offseason. During the off-season, a farmer would be more likely to catch an email or letter or have the time to meet in…
Thurston County Food Bank (TCFB) has been gleaning between 40 and 60,000 lbs of produce each year, thanks to a few key donors. TCFB works primarily with six growers (5 small-scale commercial farms and 1 service club that grows solely for the food bank). In…
GRANTSThe Development Team works all year to source and write grants that will fund Boston Area Gleaner’s programs. In the past few years, BAG has received large government grants (including a USDA hunger relief grant during COVID-19) that funded BAG’s large distribution programs. Grants were…
OUTREACH Start by attending events, coalitions, networks, and organizations that focus on food access. Farmer’s markets are an excellent place to begin having these conversations with farmers, the Master Gardeners volunteers, and many interested communities members growing their own food. The AmeriCorps member should work…
When recruiting farmers to donate surplus produce, face-to-face interactions are critical to yield new partnerships. Attending the local Sno-Valley Tilth meetings was the first step in meeting farmers face to face. Tilth organizations are made up of community members who support sustainable food production through farming,…
Within the first week of service, the coordinator started attending monthly Food Access Coalition meetings. The Coalition’s members had a strong understanding of the county’s agricultural landscape and shared that knowledge. Because they had personal relationships with farmers, coalition members were able to introduce the…
Fruit Tree Donor Relations New Fruit Tree donors hear about the program through neighbor donors and word of mouth, tabling at events, newspaper articles, and community talks. A local newspaper highlighted the project in 2012 and brought a handful of new donors. The project has…
Outreach, Communication, and Engagement of Donors CSML’s marketing efforts in traditional and social media reached volunteers and donors alike by making the mission of the program known to the greater community. Though results from cold calls and emails were negligible, local media coverage about the…