Have you added a vegetable garden to your landscape? If so, consider sharing your harvest with the local food shelf.

As a former farm-girl transplanted to the cities, I’ve always tended a big garden. About this time every year, though I always vow to plan more carefully, I find myself leaving town just as harvest is in full swing.

This is a major sign that I am not a true farmer. It is also a source of much consternation. With tomatoes plump and blushing on their vines, the zucchini coming of age nearly every evening, and pole beans producing enough to feed my entire neighborhood, I’m heartbroken. Because of a much anticipated summer road trip, I will have no time to prepare, preserve, or parade this good food around to the neighbors.

Last week, when I harvested my first grocery bag full of fresh and local produce, I began looking for a home for the bounty to come. Unfortunately, some likely beneficiaries aren’t allowed to accept donations from backyard gardens. This was the case at Meals on Wheels and our local assisted living facility.

But most food shelves are happy to accept garden donations, including our local favorite People Serving People.

Our family has essentially adopted People Serving People. Along with an annual monetary donation, we make frequent contributions from their wish list. I keep a box in the hall closet for our monthly drop off. Many things find their way into that box, from the new dress my five-year-old just won’t wear to duplicate kitchen utensils.

This month, we’ll be making extra contributions. We’ve already dropped off a couple bags of produce, and at least one more will find its way there before our big trip. With luck, the garden will survive a few days of my absence, and I’ll have plaenty to share when we return.

Tags: Free, Improving Lives

About Sarah

Sarah Aadland is striving to make family volunteering a meaningful habit for her family of five. Join the conversation as she ponders what they may (or may not have) learned and looks for helpful information about raising compassionate kids.Though she plans to one day put her Masters in Public Policy back to work for social justice, she sees family volunteering as a way to build a stronger community, a better world, and a more connected family. In addition to her children, Sarah tends a large garden, a small flock of chickens, and a habit of mindfulness amid the necessary rituals of parenting.

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