2024 AGO International Gleaning Symposium�Track 1: Building Your Network�
Building Your Local Community Network
Faith Whaley, CTK Food Share
Deb Hicks, Boston Area Gleaners
Building Your Local Community Network
Deb Hicks
Boston Area Gleaners
Faith Whaley
Christ The King Food Share and Farm Director
Boston Area Gleaners
A regional food systems organization working at the intersection of farming, food waste, and hunger relief.
Boston Area Gleaners is committed to improving access to affordable, healthy food for our communities.
We solve problems in the food system by developing innovative solutions to reduce the barriers to access.
Mission
Programs
Food Access
Stonefield Farm
Boston Food Hub
Food Access/The Gleaners
Bridging the gap between surplus food and food insecurity
By the numbers
🍏 52 farm partners
🍏 370,000 lbs gleaned
🍏 750,000 lbs from wholesale
donations
🍏 1.5 million lbs distributed
🍏 69 Food Access Partners
🍏 4 dedicated staff
Improving Farmer Viability
Boston Food Hub
Connecting farmers to wholesale customers
USDA defines a food hub as a “business or organization that actively manages the aggregation, distribution, and marketing of source-identified food products primarily from local and regional producers to strengthen their ability to satisfy wholesale, retail, and institutional demand.
By the numbers
🍎 44 local farm vendors
🍎 85 customers
🍏 28 public schools
🍎 $1.2m in revenue to
farmers
🍎 3 dedicated staff
Stonefield Farm
Crops Portfolio: collards, lettuce, tomatoes, callaloo, okra, leeks, cabbage, bok choi, garlic, green beans
By the numbers
🍏 51.5 acres; 25 acres ag. land
🍏 152,000 lbs grown FY24
🍏 3rd growing season
🍏 Farm manager + 5 farmers
Acton, MA
The BAG Family
Quick Facts
*Established in 2006
*Located here in Washington in the PNW corner
*All Volunteers except for director and a few admin hours
*Supports 30+ organizations in Whatcom County
*Operates in 3 main buckets- Farm, Food Share and Gleaning
*Free Wholesale model
*Mission- To use the vehicle of Food to bring Hope to the Hungry people in Whatcom County and to help volunteers become more like Jesus
Our Farm
*4 Acres of land
*Donated property
*Grows around 100,000 lbs a year
*Dedicated core of 30 super dedicated volunteers but experience over 500 volunteers a year
Food Share Program
*Item of the Month Club
*Business donations
*Drivers to deliver food
*Non-perishable food available to partners
Our Gleaning Program
*Local Farms
*Local Households
*Grow A Row Program
*Blueberry Picking Parties
https://www.un.org/en/observances/end-food-waste-day
Fostering Community
Belonging
Interests
Mission
Relationships
Purpose
Communication
Trust
Support
Growth
Reliability
Volunteers
Volunteers are a vital part of most organizations we really can’t do what we do without them!
So how do you build a community of volunteers that want to be a part of what you are doing?
What we do at CTK Food Share and Farm-
*Monthly BBQ’s
*Off Season Gatherings
*Give space for Connection
*Sharing in a meal for special occasions
*Core team appreciation and Birthday Cards
*Build a sense of Community
*Find what your common goals/reasons for participating and bond over those
-Examples: Your Faith, No Food Wasted, wanting to be outside, etc.
*Be intentional about welcoming new people
*Make sure people have what they need both the tools and the information
*Be clear in your communication
*Get buy in for not only what you are doing, but for the mission as well
*Take the long route- build it for the long haul
Volunteers
🍏 7360 and counting!
🍏 895 volunteered in 2023
🍏 414 active (return vols)
in 2023
🍏 295 events in 2023
and…more numbers!
Maintaining Strong Ties
🍏 Being a leader in your community–tone setting, problem solving, delegation
🍏 Using tools to facilitate in communication and accessibility
🍏 Providing community spaces to be in community
Our
Farming
Community
76 total farm partners in FY24!
Finding new Farm Partners (make a timeline)
Nurturing relationships
Outreach
Preparation Communication
Trust
Reciprocity Resource Share
Farming
FARMING
Items we typically glean-
Raspberries, Blueberries, Carrots, Corn, Strawberries, and Apples. Plus home farmers bring us misc extras.
How we work with farms-
*Work with on average 6-10 Farms each year
*Most farms reach out to us thru connections in community
*Have established relationships with several farms that partner with us each year.
*Gleaning Coordinator establishes relationships and coordinates volunteers.
Partner Organizations
The Lord’s Table
Food Bank
So how do you build your community?
*We currently have 32+ Partnerships with different organizations
*We tailor the work we do to meet the needs of our partners and the community
*Building transparent and true relationships with our partners is a core value
*Our partnerships are constantly evolving and the number of partners grows each yr
*Stop Replication and instead partner together- where can you
help support each other?
*Show up where potential partners already are
-Examples- Coalition meetings, farmers markets, farm meetings
*Good clear communication about what you have to offer and what you expect back
*True Partnerships have grown our program exponentially over the last few years
*Be the kind of partner you want back
*Being open to feedback good or bad when starting a new partnership is a great relationship builder
*Be willing to try new things
How do we do this-
*By checking in regularly
*By sticking in it for the long haul
*Yearly meetings to check in
*Partner Appreciation through notes and gifts
*Invitations to events we hold
*Participate in events they hold
*Supporting financially if needed
*Keeping their needs known to help meet them while in the community
Partner Organizations
By the numbers
🍏 69 and counting!
🍏 10 cents per pound delivered
🍏 22 week season
🍏 44 cities and towns
Any Questions?
Contact us!
Deb Hicks - Boston Area Gleaners
dhicks@bostonareagleaners.org
Faith Whaley - CTK Food Share and Farm
Faithw@ctk.church