News about Colleen and Will

Veggielution is excited to announce the promotion of Colleen Hotchkiss to the position of Farm Manager, taking over from Will Chen.  As Farm Manager, Colleen will facilitate crop planning, maintain farm infrastructure and equipment, supervise and guide the Farm Crew and Farm Distribution Interns, and oversee the design and implementation of innovative systems to engage our valuable team of volunteers.  Colleen joined Veggielution in 2012 as a member of the Silicon Valley Health Corps, taking on the critical responsibilities of managing the Farm Box and Farm Stand.   Since Fall of 2014, in her position as Distribution Manager, Colleen has continued to coordinate harvest workdays and manage the Farm Box and Farm Stand, as well as create and implement seasonal crop plans.

After graduating from Haverford College in 2011, Colleen began her career in farming at a non-profit CSA farm in Maryland and then at a 140-acre natural process farm in Petaluma. Raised in Redwood City, Colleen is passionate about sustainable agriculture in the Bay Area and will someday own and operate her own small farm.  Colleen’s attention to detail, hands-on experience, strong work ethic, and smiling face make her a natural choice to lead the Farm Crew. While she admits that it will be hard to pull herself away from her regular hours staffing the Farm Box pick-ups and the Farm Stand, Colleen looks forward to strengthening her role as a mentor to two new Farm Distribution Interns, and getting back out into the fields on Saturday workdays.  

As we welcome Colleen to this exciting new role, we congratulate Will Chen on his new job as Production Manager at the Stanford Educational Farm.  As of May 3rd, he’ll be getting things growing there from the ground up to create a space that is as beautiful as it is productive. Will originally came to Veggielution as a volunteer in 2010 and, as our Farm Manager since 2013, he has consistently been a source of motivation and support for the Farm Crew and our volunteers. He has also facilitated some major infrastructural advancements on the farm and played a crucial role in the acquisition of labor-saving implements. Will is a talented farmer and close friend and mentor to many of us and we’ll miss having him around (especially his famous scallion pancakes!). However, we know he’ll be a huge asset to Stanford in this new endeavor and we look forward to hearing all about what adventures lie ahead for him.  

The next time you come to visit Veggielution, please join us in congratulating both Colleen and Will on these exciting career advancements.