To the Editor:

National Volunteer Appreciation week is from April 21 - 27 this year and I wanted to make a statement about all the volunteers who have supported GardenShare. Volunteers are key to accomplishing GardenShare’s mission of promoting the local food system to ensure all St. Lawrence County residents have access to food.

We are a small team and our volunteers appear at our farmers markets tent to assist with the token program and help us host activities. In 2023 alone there were 49 farmer market volunteers who dedicated over 850 hours!

The Board of Directors enthusiastically wear multiple hats while working to highlight GardenShare’s role in addressing food security in our community. Other volunteers participate through GardenShare’s committees – finance, outreach and education, development, Fight Hunger Fair and 5K/Veggie Adventure Run. These volunteers help us plan our many events and represent GardenShare throughout the county.

During this year’s National Volunteer appreciation week, I want to thank every one of our volunteers for their time and commitment to GardenShare’s mission throughout the year.

Carlene Doane
GardenShare Executive Director