I decided to do my second round of ten hours of community service at the Red Willow Farm again. I had thought of other places I could volunteer, but by the time my second internship started with the Taos County Economic Development Corp, the other younger interns at Red Willow had ended their internship. This left the farm managers Angelo McHorse and Hillery Duran alone to do pretty much everything the farm required. I love helping out at Red Willow and I was not about to leave my two good friends with so much work that helped the community so much. So I worked out my schedule to help them on their busiest days, Wednesdays, the market day. Wednesday market days were also when I would sell for the Farm Stand Market, so I would make sure to get up extra early to help make their market day a success.
Volunteering from mid-August to now (early October), has been very fun and educational. Instead of doing a lot of weeding and harvesting leafy greens like in June to July, this time around we get to harvest squash, jalapenos, bell peppers, corn, and much more. I have learned a few good tips when it came to harvesting and cleaning these vegetables and how to cook them. A few more community members have come to volunteer too, which has been wonderful because it allows me to get to know everyone in my community that I may not have had the opportunity to get to know.
Volunteering at the farm has helped me appreciate everything about the farm and what it does, and has encouraged me to start my own garden next year. Being at the farm has also made me want to spread greater awareness about eating healthy and growing healthy foods.
