Volunteer Newsletter, July 18, 2005

 

HARVESTING FOR THE HUNGRY - FRENCH PLUMS

Cherries, Apricots and French Plums are what made the Valley of Heart's Delight famous and were the three main crops that kept farmers and school children busy all summer.  Cherries in June, Apricots in July (uh... June this year) and French Plums in August (uh..  July this year).  Yes, the French Plum harvest is coming in at a historically early rate.  Come connect with our valley's history and help us make a little history as well.  Please RSVP to susan@villageharvest.org for the days that you would like to help. 

Thursday, July 28th
10:00am - 1:00pm
Hitachi GST, San Jose
Volunteers 16 and over are welcome

Sunday, July 31st  (the big event!)
8:30am - 12:00pm & 1:00pm - 4:30pm
Hitachi GST, San Jose
Light snack to follow each shift compliments of Hitachi GST
Supervised children 7 & over are welcome

Sunday, August 7th
8:30am - 12:30pm
Guadalupe Historic Orchard
Children of all ages welcome.

Tuesday, August 9th
8:30am - 3:00pm
Orchard near Calero Reservoir, Almaden Valley, San Jose
Supervised children 7 & over are welcome

Special Helpers Needed!
- many for all events.  We expect to have hundreds of new volunteers participating in these harvesting for the hungry events.  If you have volunteered in the past with us and can help with anything from sign in, leading small harvesting teams, teaching others to sort, driving trucks,... we would greatly appreciate your help.  Due to the early harvest, we have a fewer weeks than we'd hoped to plan and pull everything together so all help is appreciated.

Instructions for harvesting volunteers:

  • Dress in layers, with sun protection, heat, and insect repellant in mind.
  • Wear comfortable covered shoes. There will be a lot of standing, and the orchards are uneven, so hiking boots or other footwear that protects your ankles is appropriate.
  • Bring a flat box to share in the french plum harvest. Tree ripened fruit from Santa Clara Valley... it doesn't get any better than this!
  • See our Volunteer FAQ's for more information, especially regarding children.

 

HARVESTING FOR THE HUNGRY - BERKELEY:  Fruit Trees Wanted!

We actually have lots of volunteers for this event, we are finding ourselves in an unusual position of not having enough fruit trees in Berkeley.  We know they are out there because we see them every day dropping fruit, but we're just not getting people to respond despite much press and networking.  We can use more of your help to get the good news out to your friends or family in Berkeley that have too much fruit.  We're ready to help! 

Saturday, July 23rd (w/ more dates to follow if we get the trees!)
9:00am - 12:00 pm
Spiral Gardens
2838 Sacramento St., Berkeley

Special Helpers needed:
Saturday morning, transporting boxes and equipment from San Jose to Berkeley

 

VILLAGE HARVEST TO DATE:        67,407 lbs!

The Apricot Report:  This year's crop was very mixed.  It was early at all the orchards that we harvest and came in very fast.  Usually we have at least a week before the apricots start to drop by the sudden hot weather meant that we got three days.  Also, the yields were varied.  One orchard had a record breaking harvest, one had a harvest on par with the years before and one was "anemic" as described by their owners. 

But, all in all, it was our best apricot and plum harvest to date.  With the orchards and the backyards combined, we harvested 4,846 lbs!

Thank you for everyone's help to get the apricots harvested for the hungry in our valley.  The recipients at the Mt. View Community Services Agency were so overjoyed to receive apricots!  It's a treat that they felt blessed to receive.

 

UPCOMING VILLAGE HARVEST EVENTS:

  • Please RSVP for the dates that you're available to help. 
  • Click on the links for a map to the location.
  • In the schedule above, "SHFB" in the schedule below is Second Harvest Food Bank, 750 Curtner Avenue, San Jose.
  • The CIWP team has expanded and is continuing to go out every Tuesday and Thursday.
  • Menlo Park team goes out as convenient for their schedules.  Contact joni@villageharvest.org to join in.
Date / Day Time Event Meeting Place Notes
July 23, Saturday 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Harvesting for the Hungry, Berkeley w/ Spiral Gardens Contact joni@villageharvest.org to join in. If you have friends in Berkeley with more than enough fruit on their trees, please let them know that we can help them out now.
July 26, Tuesday 8:30 am - 3:00 pm Community Fruit Harvesting, Willow Glen, Citrus. Meet 8:30 am, SHFB Volunteer Room.  You must RSVP for this event and be registered as a SHFB volunteer
July  28, Thursday 10:00 am - 1:00 pm Harvesting for the Hungry w/ Hitachi GST At Hitachi GST San Jose campus Please RSVP for further information.
Contact susan@villageharvest.org. 
July  31, Sunday 8:30 am - 12:00 pm  & 1:00 pm - 4:30 pm Harvesting for the Hungry - French Plums At Hitachi GST San Jose campus
Light snack following each harvest shift compliments of Hitachi GST.		 Supervised Children 7 & over welcome. 
Please RSVP for further information.
Contact susan@villageharvest.org.
August 1, Monday 10:00am - 4:00pm Jammin' Team - French Plum Jam Kitchen in Palo Alto Please RSVP for further information.
Contact joni@villageharvest.org.
August 2, Tuesday 10:00 am - 4:00 pm Jammin' Team - French Plum Jam Kitchen in Palo Alto Please RSVP for further information.
Contact joni@villageharvest.org.
August 7, Sunday 8:30 am - 12:30 pm Harvesting for the Hungry - French Plums Meet 8:30 am, Guadalupe River Park & Gardens, San Jose Please RSVP for further information.
Contact susan@villageharvest.org.
August 9, Tuesday 8:30 am - 3:00 pm Harvesting for the Hungry - French Plums, Almaden Valley, San Jose. Meet 8:30 am, SHFB Volunteer Room.  You must RSVP for this event and be registered as a SHFB volunteer. 
Contact joni@villageharvest.org.
August 14, Sunday 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Community Fruit Harvesting, Mountain View & Los Altos.  Summer Citrus and perhaps some apples or pears. Meet 9:00 am, Mt. View CSA Contact karen@villageharvest.org to join in.
August 19, Friday 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm Preserving from the Garden - Tomatoes Contact joni@villageharvest.org to join in Comparing tomato varieties and best methods to preserve each.  (postponed from July)
Remember that the best tasting, tree ripened fruit goes home with the volunteers, as it will be too ripe to go through distribution at the Second Harvest Food Bank. Perfect for people who like to make preserves. All dates subject to change based upon ripening and weather.

OTHER ORGANIZATION EVENTS:

  • The following are events by other organizations that may be of interest to Village Harvest volunteers.
Date / Day Time Event Meeting Place Notes
July 30, Saturday 10:00 am - 12:00 pm Andy's Orchard Fruit Tasting & Harvest Walk 1615 Half Road, Morgan Hill $10 admission for tasting & tour. 

 

Cheers,
Joni Diserens
Village Harvest
 joni@villageharvest.org
 www.villageharvest.org
(888) FRUIT-411
(650) 740-7725

 

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