For Individual Volunteers, NOT Groups

Count/bundle and pack/check 13,000 seed packets requested by Boston community gardens

Six sweatshirt- and sweater-clad masked and gloved adult and youth from two families (in the same pandemic pod) count and rubber band bundles of 10 parsley seed packets around a table outside in a driveway

WHEN

  • Tuesday 3/12/2024, 5:45pm to 9:15pm Optional:Arrive at 5pm or 5:15pm
  • Sign up by 3/08/2024

    Join the Backup List if you can reserve this day/time.

WHAT

Help people grow more local food by counting/bundling and packing/checking 13,000 seed packets requested by Boston community gardeners.

Volunteers must bring and wear masks and provided gloves to protect themselves from the fungicide on the seeds.

WHERE

Downtown Boston, MA between Downtown Crossing and Aquarium T stations

Note: PMD only shares specific directions, maps, and other details with registered volunteers since we cannot accommodate any walk-ins, i.e., unregistered volunteers simply showing up.

WHY

New England gardeners typically spend the winter planning for their spring-summer-fall gardens. This includes deciding what to plant.

Counting, bundling, and packing/checking seed requests with bulk-purchased seeds benefits participating community gardens in Boston. This helps The Trustees ensure the long-term viability of Boston's community gardens and will result in needed food being grown locally.

13,000 packets of free seeds will be distributed to the gardens and low-income gardeners who requested them by 2/4 as hosted by PMD online. This is PMD's 27th year assisting with this detailed effort.

Seed requests will either be picked up by community garden leaders at the annual 3/16 Gardeners' Gathering or City Natives Nursery in Mattapan by advance arrangement.

 

HOW

To participate sign yourself up by 3/8 at http://www.pmd.org/s/031224.htm
Incomplete submissions cannot be honored.

Each individual member of a small group/family must register him-/her-self separately. Spaces for friends or children cannot be reserved since these individuals must take responsibility for their participation by registering themselves.
Exception: A parent/guardian of any volunteers age 12-15 can register these minors.

PMD canNOT accept any UNregistered, walk-in volunteers.

Participation is required for whole hours beginning on the hour.

If this popular project reaches maximum capacity (12), then interested volunteers should join the backup list, since we anticipate (and promote) cancellations due to flu, rsv, and covid-19 infection and exposure. Joining the PMD backup list means making a commitment to reserve the shift(s) you select until the date you provide.

For volunteers age 12-17, a parent/guardian must also print and co-sign PMD's waiver/release; plus, for volunteers younger than age 16, a parent/guardian must also register before the project reaches maximum capacity and participate fully with the minor.


Call PMD if you cannot sign up using our form.
If you experience any difficult registering online to volunteer with PMD, please immediately CALL THE PMD OFFICE at (*82) 1-781-963-0373 so that we can help you AND troubleshoot the problem so that other potential volunteers will not face the same problem. Thanks!

After you sign-up, you will see a confirmation screen and receive a confirmation email message, so be sure to save the date and times on your calendars AND add [email protected] to your address/white/allow list.

Then a few days before this project PMD will email specific details in a PDF, including directions to the project site by public transit and by car*, what to wear/expect, checklist, map, and release form for minors that a parent/guardian must co-sign and provide at at check-in on 3/12 -- Volunteers age 18+ provide their consent when registering online, to minimize paper/contact.
*Discouraged due to the gridlock and lack of affordable parking in this area.

PMD policy requires that all volunteers participate for the entire project, to enable us to finish all the work we start, clean the project site, gather and clean our tools and materials, and enable all volunteers to leave on-time.

 

WHO

People Making a Difference (PMD) is a nonprofit organization that promotes informed and responsible volunteerism by involving people in tangible work that meets local needs and by assisting companies in building successful community involvement programs that:
  • Produce appreciable results while conserving recipients' limited resources.
  • Educate volunteers about broader issues.
  • Bring people together to make a difference.

 

 

�Growing food was the first activity that gave us enough prosperity to stay in one place, form complex social groups, tell our stories, and build our cities.�
Barbara Kingsolver

�Growing your own food may be one of the most powerful steps you can take for the health of yourself, your family, and your planet.�
Lindsay Oberst, Food Revolution Network

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