August Volunteer of the Month - Savanna

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Meet Savanna! She is a student at the University of Tampa and is also August's Volunteer of the Month! She has dedicated her time to Veggielution since she was in high school and has been coming in steadily every Friday and Saturday since May. Her favorite task to take on when at Veggielution is harvesting, since it's a lighter one.

One of the best things about coming to Veggielution, in her opinion, is hanging out with all the other volunteers and staff. She's had the opportunity of getting to know some of the people more personally and spent time with them outside of Veggielution. She enjoys watching the interactions between the employees and interns, how they joke around with each other. Aside from building new friendships through her time spent here, she also appreciates being part of what Veggielution does. As she said it's "not only change you can see, but change you can do." 

If Savanna could be any vegetable, she said she would be a carrot. Carrots are one of her favorite vegetable and they taste good. Also, carrots are fun to harvest!

All her effort and time spent at Veggielution is greatly appreciated. It's definitely been a pleasure getting to know Savanna better and we hope she continues to volunteer on the farm!

 

Find out more about volunteering at Veggielution www.veggielution.org/volunteer

October Volunteer of the Month: Ishmael Gallegos

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If you haven’t met Ishmael Gallegos yet, you probably haven’t stopped by the Veggielution kitchen on a Saturday workday.  Once a chef who worked in restaurants throughout California, Ishmael can now be found at the farm every weekend, helping to prepare meals for the Saturday potlucks.

Ishmael’s appreciation for cooking started as a child.  His mother taught him to cook while he was only 7, chopping and preparing the ingredients, while Ishmael would mix, stir and cook.  As the oldest of 6 kids, he would often end up cooking for his brothers and sisters as well.  At the age of 17, Ishmael entered the restaurant industry and began working in kitchens to make a living.

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September Volunteer of the Month: June Magnaldi

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Even if it's been a week or two since we've seen Emily around the farm, we know that when June Magnaldi is around our favorite goose will come running. Emily literally follows our resident goose-whisperer around where ever she goes.

June has been helping at Veggielution once or twice weekly since June of 2011, taking the 1 1/2 hour bus ride from Santa Cruz to get here. She's been a Workday Leader for most of that time, and takes the responsibility of educating her volunteers very seriously.

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Volunteer of the month: Roberto Martinez

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There are several reasons I volunteer at the farm: meeting people of all ages with a like-mind towards out environment and making new friends, getting off of the couch and getting my hands dirty with rewarding outdoor activities. Passing on life-skills I have acquired during the course of my life to those that show an interest. Having a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day and just getting some healthy sunshine and exercise.

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