Yesterday, I had the honor to harvest in the first backyard where this scrappy gleaning operation began exactly 3 years ago.  The Valley Glen tangerine tree where I started this work was on hiatus – taking its every-other-year vacation from fruiting. But the navel tree adjacent to it was fully loaded as it has been every year, with incredible (organic) softball-sized specimens. Just as importantly, the little girl Ava, whose yard it is, and has grown up under and around our ladders, was there to greet us as the Fruitmobile pulled up.  She was no longer the tiny four year old sprout (see first photo below) but she now wielded her own picker alongside us and cleared had grown to grasp what our annual visits mean for the hundreds of people who will be fed from the tree in her yard – and the importance she and her mother Heather play in the Fruitanthropy equation as fruit donors.

First Harvest 1/17/09

Being Guinea Pigs for their crazy neighbor Rick’s idea, joining in on the gleaning and knowing Jan 17th is the magical day for us, Ava and Heather are always there to welcome us and pitch in.  Just watching Ava grow to nearly double her size – but more so, seeing her understand and now appreciate the the importance of this work is reward enough to keep coming back – the 16 cases of fruit (with some from a neighbor’s trees from 3 doors up who has recently joined our program) is irresistible.

Third Anniversary Harvest with Ava 1/17/12

In the time since we began the program  in early 2009, with no name, no agenda and just these two trees, we have grown into a professional operation – actually So Cal’s largest – that helps food pantries and other agencies feed our most vulnerable with gleaned/rescued produce. Soberingly – the numbers of food insecure (people who are not sure where their next meal is coming from) has also ballooned since 2009 to 50 million across the country. Staggering, angering and yes, vastly actionable. I’ll go to my grave convinced hunger in America is a solvable issue. Solvable not by growing more food – but simply by DISTRIBUTING it more thoughtfully, equitably and with a keener understanding that our nation wastes over 40% of the edible food we grow/cook/manufacture. Yes, you read that right – 40%!

Yesterday’s pick came on the heels of our 3rd annual Fruitstock weekend in Santa Barbara where over 40 LA volunteers drove 90 minutes north to help glean over 15,000 lbs that were shared by the SB Foodbank, Oxnard Foodshare and MEND.  Two days of kick-ass mandarin madness on two gorgeous properties with our SB Backyard Bounty pals were separated by a potluck with new and old friends, board members, staff and donors.  Again, an honor to lead it, but even more fun just to be a part of it.

As I wait here in the Fruit Cave for SOVA to pick up those 16 cases of navels from yesterday, which no doubt will flow in and out of their efficient pantry door in 24-48 hours, there is some satisfaction knowing that we may not be conquering hunger at Food Forward but we are fighting it and bringing our community closer with every harvest we undertake.

From 85lbs of tangerines delivered to SOVA on Jan. 17th, 2009, we closed out year three yesterday with over 686,000 lbs (or nearly 2.75 million servings) donated to over 25 agencies in LA, Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties of all shapes and sizes.

2012 holds amazing promise – new programs, strengthening of the Ventura Branch, social enterprise, new interns, new partnerships, a new board chair (the incredible Pam Kaizer) and more – and along with it more challenges. All that to say, every time you drive by a fully loaded orange or grapefruit tree, I hope you will want to rise to the occasion, strap on a harvest bag and go pick?!

Thanks for all the love, support and Fruitanthropy – and here’s to the next three years of sharing the abundance across Fruitland.

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It’s that time of year Fruit-lovers!
Yes, it’s FRUITSTOCK weekend in Santa Barbara! YAY!

To honor our last picking weekend in our fiscal fruit year, we are having our Two-Day-Fruitstock-Extravaganza!!

Join us on this fun adventure and celebration where we will pick hundreds of mandarin trees on two beautiful rolling estates.  After our AM pick on Saturday Jan. 14^th, we will have a glorious potluck BBQ.  We will supply lunch on both days and encourage you to bring your friends and family to join our Food Forward Family!  Plus, you’ll be in the gorgeous county of Santa Barbara, so there will be plenty of scenic places to visit.

Sign up to volunteer on our events page TODAY for either one day or both days!

Date: Saturday January 14^th and Sunday January 15^th
Time: 9:30am to 2:30pm.
Location: Goleta, Ca
Ages 10+ welcomed.

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DON’T FORGET TO CLIMB HIGHER!

Dear Fruit Loops,

We are smack in the middle of our CLIMB HIGHER WITH FOOD FORWARD Campaign and need your help to do just that – CLIMB HIGHER!

For those of you who have already donated, we can’t thank you enough! For those of you haven’t yet donated, this is just a reminder. The Plum Foundation has very generously re-upped with us from last year with an even larger match grant of $7500 – which means every dollar WE RECEIVE between Dec 1 and 31st will be matched dollar for dollar (up to $7500) – and thus $7500 can magically turn into a $15,000 bounty – but only with YOUR HELP.

This is the ONE time of year we come to our volunteers and close fruity friends – online and WITHOUT a paper trail – for a LEG UP. Please take a look at some zesty highlights of our AMAZING ACCOMPLISHMENTS for this year – then please consider a generous year-end 100% tax deductible donation.

• Founder, Rick Nahmias presented Food Forward at the TEDx Conference at USC (April)
• CAN IT! – Food Preserving Workshop sells out and has its first class series in partnership with The Farmers Kitchen, Hollywood
• FF Ventura County/Moorpark, our first branch officially opened (June) and harvests over 60,000 lbs by year’s end
• We held The Biggest Pick at CSUN, involving the largest number of volunteers to date (300+) and harvesting 18,000+ LBS to share between 3 pantries (September)
• Our receiving agencies exceed two dozen – and we become the BIGGEST donor of fruit at SOVA (a program of Jewish Family Services) where Food Forward made its very first donation less than 3 years ago.
• The tally of produce harvested/rescued by our organization surpasses 625,000 lbs – or 2.5+ MILLION SERVINGS!– helping touch the lives of over 400,000 recipients in 2011 alone! (November)

As this link [http://foodforward.org/climb-higher-food-forward/] explains – when you donate to the CLIMB HIGHER CAMPAIGN at levels of $250 and above you will have your name emblemized on our Stokes ladders – just one of the many tools these badly needed funds will go toward buying to help us CLIMB HIGHER.

• For a $100 donation or above you will receive a pair of our nifty Food Forward gloves.

• For a $250 donation you will have your (or your family’s) name emblemized along with others on a rung of one of our ladders + a pair of FF gloves.

• For a $500 donation you will have your name emblemized on an exclusive rung of a ladder + a pair of FF gloves.

• For a $1,000 donation you will receive your name on a top rung + two pairs of FF gloves.

• For a $2,500 donation you will have an exclusive naming opportunity of an entire ladder with up to five names of your choice to be placed on any of the rungs + five pairs of FF gloves.

• For a $15,000 donation you will be buying us another badly needed tool: a stake side truck (enabling us to haul upward of 5,000 lbs of fruit at any given time.) For this bountiful gesture your name will be emblemized on the cab of this fine vehicle – and you will help us choose the vanity plate!

Donations can be made via PayPal or check (send to Food Forward 7412 Fulton Ave. #3 North Hollywood, CA 91605) with a notation of your glove size and how you would like your name to read.

Please invest (or re-invest) in the important work Food Forward is cultivating by Harvesting Food, Fighting Hunger, and Building Community and we PROMISE to not bother you or to ask you to come down from the trees for another 11 months!

Thank You and have a great rest of ’11 and healthy juicy ’12!

The Food Forward Team.

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POSITION: Administrative and Special Projects Intern

ORGANIZATION: Food Forward (501c3 non-profit), www.foodforward.org

HOURS: 20 hours per week M, W, F from 10 – 5pm at our North Hollywood office.

DATES: January 15th, 2012- December 15th, 2012

COMPENSATION: This position is currently unpaid.

ORGANIZATION OVERVIEW:
Food Forward’s mission is to reconnect people with people – through food – by bringing together volunteers and neighbors to share in the gleaning and distributing of locally grown food from private homes and public spaces which is then distributed to local food pantries and organizations serving those in need. Since forming in 2009, Food Forward has rescued over 640,000 pounds of produce from over 325 local backyards and orchards.

Food Forward is growing by leaps and bounds and is at an exciting point in it’s development. To keep up with the increasing opportunities and demands coming to our organization, we are looking for an individual who will assist the core Food Forward team with administrative and programmatic needs!

We seek someone who is looking for a dynamic experience that will provide a highly valuable work experience in a fast, mission-driven, non profit setting. This position will provide professional experience assisting in the development, planning, and execution of vital programs at Food Forward. The position provides intimate exposure to working with several of Food Forward’s partnership agencies as well. We seek an applicant who is excited to become better familiarized with the Food Justice community of Los Angeles.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES:
The Admin/Program assistant will work directly with the Managing Director, Volunteer Coordinator, and the Harvest Coordinator on various projects and tasks pertaining to Food Forward’s daily operations and programing. The Admin/Prog Assistant will work closely with the core team on following:

Volunteer Coordinator
- Support the volunteer in community outreach and community development efforts to grow volunteer base in LA region and Ventura County.
- Maintain an organized volunteer database
- Maintain strong organizational relationships with super volunteers (pick leaders, property scouts, and neighborhood captains).
- Help with administrative needs to maintain and develop Food Forward Community Chapters.
- Help to ensure that the logistics of each pick is organized and coordinated.
- Make site visits to community organizations, institutions, and events to pitch Food Forward’s mission and encourage involvement.

Harvest Coordinator
- Assist the Harvest Coordinator in maintaining the database of properties and coordinating the scouting of trees in LA and Ventura Counties.
- Manage the “FruitLine”, Food Forward’s telephone messaging service.
- Provide support for the development of the “I Pick It” model
- Conduct research on potential properties for larger picks as well as private picks.
- Help coordinate property scouting with available property scouts.
- Manage Vehicle Maintenance on Food Forward vehicles.

Managing Director
- Assist in the development and implementation of the Farmer’s Market Recovery Program
- Assistance with CAN IT! Program – FF’s food preservation fundraising program.
- Manage inventory and status of merchandise (Create a system that works for Food Forward and clients selling Products).

*This role also requires the Admin/Program Assistant to become a Pick Leader and a Property Scout. This person will be required to lead at least 1 fruit pick monthly and scout 1 property monthly.

QUALIFICATIONS:
Ideally, candidate will have a strong interest in hunger and food justice issues. We are looking for an extremely detail-oriented person who enjoys organizing and collecting data and who can work efficiently and comfortably on a website to manage information. Candidate should be personable and able follow up with property owners of various personalities and temperaments. Candidate must have a strong interest in local fruit tree varietals and fruit tree care. Candidate should be well versed in Los Angeles and SFV geography.

Other qualifications include:
- Bachelors Degree in a related field
- Strong knowledge and comfort with WordPress, Twitter, Facebook, & other social media
- Experience in food justice work desired
- Proven effective data management skills
- Strong people and public speaking skills
- Flexible and able to work well under pressure
- Experience working in a fast paced environment, start up or non-profit desired
- A valid drivers license and ability to easily navigate the SFV
- Willingness to work some weekends
- Bilingual in English and Spanish is preferred
- Must have a reliable form a transportation

If you are interested in this position, please email your most current resume and a 100-150 word letter explaining why you want to work for Food Forward and what excites you most about our mission. Please send your resume and letter of interest in PDF format (one PDF File, please) to Max@foodforward.org.

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