So you want to be an Arcadian!
First, please fill out This Form so we can get to know you and find ways to leverage your unique talents and schedule: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeuGtTBPQJbrLDkmXTb8hfyT4BUidEywXeekL6lqEVNt-OS6g/viewform
There are many ways to volunteer with Arcadia:
Join Arcadia for a team-building day on the farm this season! Arcadia staff share sustainable agricultural practices and introduce volunteers to our mission to cultivate vibrant local food systems to prioritize health, equity, and sustainability.
We provide water, tools, gardening gloves, training and guidance. You provide the teamwork!
We have two farm sites on our property.
Dogue Farm is our 3-acre vegetable production and veteran-farmer training site. Arcadia established Dogue Farm in 2016 on an old horse pasture, growing more than 80,000 servings of fresh, healthy food for Arcadia's Mobile Market customers in low-income, low-food access neighborhoods around Washington, D.C. It is named to reference George Washington’s former Dogue Run Farm on the same site, which primarily featured a mix of rye, corn and other grains for his distillery.
Hilltop Farm is a mixed vegetable farm and the site of our children’s experiential Groundhog Garden, as well as the location for field trips and farm camp for 2,500 schoolchildren annually.
The Experience: Arcadia staff will discuss sustainable agricultural practices and introduce volunteers to our program areas and mission, including food access, healthy food production, and veteran farmer training. We will provide water, tools, gardening gloves, instruction and oversight. Volunteers engage in seasonally appropriate work that supports our agriculture, food access and educational mission. Volunteers should wear comfortable clothes, closed-toe shoes, sunhats, and bring a reusable water bottle. Volunteers may bring work gloves or borrow ours.
Dates:
Thursdays and Fridays
April-November
10am-2pm
Alternative options are negotiable, dependent on staff availability, seasonality, and discretion of the Volunteer Coordinator. Please contact leah@arcadiafood.org.
Price:
Group Size: We can accomodate up to 25 volunteers per day (if a larger group is desired, please contact pam@arcadiafood.org)
GROUP PROJECTS:
REQUEST A GROUP VOLUNTEER DAY by contacting Leah@Arcadiafood.org.
Open Volunteer Day
The Experience:
The second Saturday of every month, sign up to volunteer for Open Volunteer Day. This is a great introduction to our two farm sites and our work creating a more equitable, sustainable food system. Tasks may include but are not limited to building beds, weeding, hoeing, moving compost and wood chips, irrigating, tending the chickens, repairing fences, trellising tomatoes, seeding or transplanting. This is a great time to get to know staff and determine if you actually enjoy farm work. Supervised children are welcome. No dogs, please (working dogs excepted).
The Expectation:
Dates: Second Saturday of the Month.
Price: Free! Sign up through Eventbrite.
2020 Open Saturday Volunteer Days at Arcadia Farm are as follows:
Register for an Open Saturday Volunteer Day Today! Click HERE
Farm Tonic
The Experience:
Can’t get enough of the farm? Join our team on the first two Sundays of each month for a few hours of weeding, conversation, and a potluck feast at Arcadia Farn. Bring something to share, get your hands dirty, and unwind before the new work week. Sign up for Farm Team Newsletters, which will alert you to schedules, tasks and agricultural information that will come in handy on our next outing. Supervised children are welcome, but the potluck has adult-leaning food and drinks. Email farmteam@arcadiafood.org
The Expectation:
Show up at the appointed time (approximately 3 hours before sunset), bring something to share for the potluck, and be ready for dirty jobs. Farm Tonickers do a lot of weeding!
DATES: Generally the First and Second Sundays of the month
PRICE: Free! But sign up through Eventbrite, and bring something delicious to share!
Preliminary 2029 Tonic Dates Dates:
April 5
April 12
May 3
May 10
June 7
June 14
July 5
July 12
August 2
August 9
September 6
September 13
October 4
October 11
November 1
November 8
Arcadia Farm Volunteer
For the volunteer who really wants to learn about sustainable farming at the side of a professional farmer, and can commit to working on a regular basis.
The Experience:
The Expectation:
Dates: April – November
Price: FREE!
Register: Please fill out This Form to sign up as a volunteer: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeuGtTBPQJbrLDkmXTb8hfyT4BUidEywXeekL6lqEVNt-OS6g/viewform
The Experience: Arcadia seeks Farm Education Volunteers to assist with the Arcadia Farm Field Trip Program which teaches students about the origins of healthy food. Field Trips help students in grades Pre-K-5th make the connection that fresh food comes from the earth through hands-on, farm-based learning. Trips familiarize students with new fruits and vegetables that grow in the DC Metro area so that they will be more likely to eat those healthy foods when they see them in the cafeteria or at home. Farm Education Volunteers help make Field Trips safe, educational and fun. They help monitor the space, provide instruction during trips, and assist with general garden maintenance.
The Expectation: Volunteers commit to one of our two Field Trip days: either Thursday or Friday from 9:00am-2:30pm
Dates: One day/week from October - November. This is a 5 hour/week commitment under the guidance of our Farm Education Director.
Price: Free
Register: Please fill out This Form to sign up as a volunteer: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeuGtTBPQJbrLDkmXTb8hfyT4BUidEywXeekL6lqEVNt-OS6g/viewform
Volunteer on our Mobile Market, a national leader in food access. You’ll help set up and breakdown the market, assist customers and provide basic nutritional education. The Mobile Market operates Monday through Friday, April 30th through October 30th, at regular, weekly stops throughout Washington, D.C., and Northern Virginia. The market's daily stops will occur every Monday evening, Tuesday evening, and all day Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Check out the Mobile Market page to view the season’s complete schedule. Volunteers will be asked to commit to one (or more!) market stop(s) for the duration of the season.
If you would like to volunteer with the Mobile Market, please email Erin Close at Erin@arcadiafood.org with a letter of interest and relevant work experience.
Represent Arcadia at local events, meetings, and presentations, or volunteer to help at one of our public programs. This is a great way to get involved with Arcadia and to learn more about what we are doing to change the Food System. To learn about upcoming volunteer opportunities, please join our volunteer mailing list (make sure to check the box for the volunteer list).
Special Events:
Farm Dinner: Wear your best gingham and plaid and help us pull off the most fabulous farm event of the year: the Farm Dinner! Offered every fall (and sometimes spring too!) this fundraising dinner is a gorgeous night on the farm working with the region’s top chefs to celebrate all things Arcadia!
The Funtacular: Old Fashioned Farm Festival Goodness! Games, donuts, music, a pumpkin patch and learning stations… a great way to involve whole families on the farm!
Snallygaster: This annual, massive craft beer festival is a benefit for Arcadia. Pour beer or work the ticket tent, and have a great day with 10,000 beer lovers!
Farmer-Chef Speed Sourcing Happy Hour: This annual gathering of the top farmers and chefs in the DC region matches buyers and sellers of local food, all for the good of the regional farm economy. Come help us get everyone mixing!
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