Harvest Volunteers Provide a Helping Hand at Potrero Nuevo Farm

Would you like to help provide fresh, organic produce to Coastside low-income families? Get your hands dirty and breathe some fresh air? Learn about farming? You can enjoy all of those and have fun by volunteering at Potrero Nuevo Farm.

Our farm was founded 5 years ago and is committed to sustainable agriculture, fair accessibility to food, and ecological land management. 85% of our produce is grown for donation — this year we will grow 15,000 pounds of food to donate to Catholic Worker House in Half Moon Bay and Puente in Pescadero who will then distribute the vegetables and fruits to local families in need. To accomplish this we rely on the generosity of volunteers who have told us how much they enjoy coming to the farm.

One regular volunteer said, “Helping in the field is something I really love. Being close to the source of our food, learning from the experience, and helping others to eat healthy food all makes it more fun to cook and eat.”

We have several ways you can help. People free on weekdays can help with our weekly harvests. Beginning in early May, every Monday from 1-4 and Thursday from 10-1 you’re welcome to join our farm managers, Suzie and Jay Trexler, and volunteers from the Catholic Worker House to harvest the food for donation.

Eric DeBode, who runs Catholic Worker House, said, “Thanks to Potrero Nuevo Farm we have had a great year. Several of our guests at the free community breakfast helped us pick and distribute thousands of pounds of gorgeous produce. What a pleasure to work at the farm — it’s a model for doing good work in the local community and helping those in need.”

The harvest volunteers need to complete a 30-minute safety training since they’ll be handling sharp tools and sometimes lifting heavy crates and we’ll offer trainings throughout the season. Since this type of volunteering requires training, we ask that people join the harvests only if they know they can come at least 4 times throughout our May – November growing season. The volunteer harvests are kid-friendly, too: safe tools are available, we’ll have light lifting tasks and it offers kids an opportunity to visit the farm and farm animals. Our harvests always conclude with the group enjoying a snack together made with fresh ingredients from the farm.

For people free only on weekends, we have scheduled three Saturday workdays on June 8, July 27, and October 12. The weekend workdays require no training and involve light fieldwork like planting, weeding or building a compost pile. Everything is family-friendly – we have easy tasks for children and kid-safe tools.  The Saturday workdays go from 9:00 until noon – come for all or part of the morning – and always conclude with a potluck. Come prepared – bring a hat, gloves, and sunscreen, dress in layers and please bring a potluck item. We’ll provide herbal teas made from our herb garden. Come alone, bring some friends or put together a group from your church, school or social club and come join the fun.

We’ve been fortunate at the farm to have many volunteers visit over the last few years and help us grow food for low-income families on the Coast. Our farm manager Suzie explains “Having volunteers on the farm is a highlight of the week. Not only do we accomplish much with many hands, but it is this group effort and inevitable shared sense of accomplishment that puts the farm work into perspective and makes it feel meaningful.”

So, if you’d like to work outdoors, contribute to a good cause, enjoy the company of others and share fresh, healthy snacks as well, become a volunteer at Potrero Nuevo Farm. If you’d like to help out this season, please email us at volunteer@potreronuevofarm.org or call Bill at 650-726-5700.