“You must be Oliver”, said the woman with a friendly Eastern Shore accent and a rich, farmer’s voice. “Hmmm,” I thought, “This is an auspicious start. She already knows my name.” Well, not really, because I quickly learned that it had nothing to do with reputation and everything to do with tardiness. You see I was the only volunteer who had gotten lost finding the farm, which made me late…and, the only one not accounted for. And, that was my first exposure to the common sense of Amy Cawley.

Amy Cawley is the Farm-to-Food Bank Coordinator for the Maryland Food Bank. Through tireless effort she has created a network of farms that provide hungry Marylanders with local produce which might otherwise be wasted. Today, Amy was herding nine volunteers to “Glean” corn from a field in Dorchester County. The farmer, Paul Jackson, had corn that he couldn’t sell and rather than plow it under he contacted Amy to see if she could salvage it. Gleaning is an ancient term that literally means to gather grain left by reapers. However, in our case it meant that we would pick the delicious sweet white corn directly from the stalks.

Amy was all business and got me right to work. She assigned me a row (my, but it did seem long!) and showed me how to properly pick corn by pulling the ear down and then twisting it right off the stalk. Her practiced hands made it look easy; a lot easier than when I tried it. Well, after a while I got the hang of it and set on down my row.

Volunteering for a good cause always makes me feel good and the shared sense of fellowship with the other volunteers is rewarding; but another benefit is the opportunity to make new friends. It never fails to happen and today was no exception. I found myself picking a row of corn next to Jane, a delightful woman who owns a Christmas tree farm with her husband on Mathewstown Road on the way to Denton. We struck up a conversation about nothing in particular and kept at it for a good hour…all the way until the end of our row; and then all the way through the next one! And, while we were “all ears”, we picked over 500 ears (of corn). I made a new friend, the conversation made the job go faster, and now I know where I am buying this year’s Christmas tree.

At one point I had the opportunity to pick corn on a row next to Amy, and it was then that I learned her impressive story. The moment you experience her voice you can tell that Amy Cawley is a farmer. She is tied to the land, and she knows the land. She views the land as a resource and nature’s excess as a gift to feed those who are less fortunate. In five years, Amy has grown the Farm-to-Food Bank program to the point where it has procured and distributed over 5 million pounds of farm fresh produce! Without her efforts the crops would have gone to waste… and, with her efforts countless families have been fed.

After about two hours Amy summoned our merry band of volunteers and told us our job was done. We were all pleasantly tired, but also pleasantly pleased with our efforts. In two hours our 9 volunteers, plus Amy, picked 2,262 pounds of corn, which comes out to 2,753 ears. This will yield 1,885 meals, or 471 meals for a family of 4.

So, I did some good, enjoyed the fellowship of a shared experience, made a new friend, and met the remarkable Amy Cawley… a person who truly makes a difference. It was not a bad day.

Caption Text Display Here

Would You Like to Volunteer?

Amy Cawley and the Maryland Food Bank could have accommodated 100 volunteers that day. Amy has no doubt that plenty of good people would have jumped at the opportunity, but she had no way to tell them about it.

St. Johns County has thousands of citizens who volunteer and a disproportionate amount of them are Seniors. This makes sense, because we often have time to give.

However, there are more volunteer opportunities than there are volunteers. This is not due to a shortage of the willing, but rather it is because these good people aren’t aware of how and where they can help.
This is where you come in. And this is where you can make a difference.

There are several websites and organizations that post volunteer opportunities in the our area. These websites and organizations typically consolidate listings from various non-profits, allowing you to find a wide range of opportunities in one place. Some options to consider include:

HandsOn Jacksonville: HandsOn Jacksonville www.handsonjacksonville.org/ is a local volunteer organization that connects volunteers with opportunities from various non-profits in the area.

VolunteerMatch: VolunteerMatch www.volunteermatch.org/ is a nationwide online platform that connects volunteers with non-profit organizations. You can search for volunteer opportunities in Jacksonville by entering your location and interests.

Idealist: Idealist www.idealist.org/ is another nationwide platform that connects volunteers with non-profit organizations. You can search for volunteer opportunities in Jacksonville, Florida by entering your location and interests.

United Way of Northeast Florida: The United Way is a major non-profit organization with a presence in many communities. Their Northeast Florida branch www.unitedwaynefl.org/ often posts volunteer opportunities from various organizations in the Jacksonville area.

City of Jacksonville: The City of Jacksonville has a volunteer services division www.coj.net/departments/parks-and-recreation/volunteer-services that offers various opportunities to help the local community. This may include parks and recreation, animal care, and more.