Volunteer!

Want to volunteer?

We’re looking for people to join our core team, to help keep harvests, preserve-making, outreach workshops and more rolling like a foraged-jam roll.
Here’s more info on what roles are available: https://abundanceoxford.wordpress.com/about/join-the-core-team/

**Currently, we need your help to help make Disco Soup run souper smoothly on  Saturday 3rd November 2018!**

Saturday 3rd November, 12 – 3pm, free cook-up n FEAST from scrumptious food surplus… it’s open to the general public but from 9:30 am – 5:30pm we’re looking for volunteers to help make it run souper smoothly…

More info here:- https://abundanceoxford.wordpress.com/disco-soup/

Facebook from 2017 Disco Soup here:-  https://www.facebook.com/events/2203156543244667/

Sign up to volunteer here and then email DiscoSoupOxford [@] gmail.com to let us know your name and number! !:- https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LflWER_hpEUv87irWMZsXdHGsAlY5xZ29VQjginiOFQ/edit?usp=sharing

ALL WELCOME! We need arty-crafty folks, cooks, chopper-uppers, washing up lovers, music-loving folks, tech-loving folks and more…!

 We need help: * HARVESTING * COORDINATING HARVESTS *PRESERVING (Jam-Making) * APPLE PRESSING * REDISTRIBUTING!

 Wing us an email at:  AbundanceHarvestsOxford [@] gmail.com!

Or send us a text with:
– your name – email address – which area you live in (Cowley/Iffley/Temple Cowley/Headington etc.) &  – if you have a bike or not (no worries if not!)

We aim to respond within 3 days 🙂  Or come along to a meeting/social or event & chat to us!

Please get in touch (email AbundanceHarvestsOxford @gmail.com) or ring 07708776392 or 077515 20 45 7  any time between July 30th and December 10th or anytime between January 12th and March 1st  if you’d like to help informally e.g. with the odd harvest, or foraging workshop or if would be keen to get stuck in with any of the roles below!

 – Skill-Sharers – (few hours per month/ every 2 months) those who are keen to share skills such as chutney making, jam making, foraging & more: you don’t need to be an expert (!), you just need to try it out a few times before and get confident enough to share your newfound (or well-seasoned) skills! We’ll help you find a venue, jars or bottles and cover the costs of any extra ingredients. Ideally you’d be able to commit to one session/2 months.

-> We’ve got Harvest & Preserve workshops coming up in late summer/autumn: that needs a skill-share leader or a pair of skill-sharers, in collaboration with OxGrow (Oxfords’ abundant edible community garden): been there recently and got ideas? Know exactly what you’d like to do if you could get your hands on August fruit and veg gluts (cabbages, marrows, beetroot, carrots, early apples & more…)  Let us know!

– Harvest coordinators – 3 hours / week, 1/2 days on weekends or few hours / fortnight)  those who are keen to lead tree harvests – be that plums, apples, pears or other! We need you to dedicate to a minimum of 2 harvest sessions per month –  those can be during times that suit you. Usually our harvesting hours are somewhere between 5:30pm – dusk/9:30pm during weekdays, and anytime during day-light hours on the weekend. Morning harvests also often work well for some volunteers too, particularly students: a harvest is a great way to start the day! Once you get stuck in you may well want to join in and coordinate lots more!

– Outreach Liaison – (approx. 1-1.5 hours / week)  to identify links with new organisations and strengthen links with charitable organisations we are already talking to, see what specific needs organisations have (for example, jam making or eating immediately), see where we can organise free fruit giveaways and see whether they can accept fruit from upcoming harvests.

–Publicity/Promotions – (approx. 2 hours/week) promoting our events on facebook, tweeting, putting up photos/collating photos (or you can take photos too if you’d like to!) putting content into a newsletter format on Mail Chimp, helping design posters and helping finalise and coordinating the current flyer content.

– Fundraising Support – (approx. 1 hour/3 weeks) to identify new funding opportunities and support application bids that are being written by looking through data on the fruit we’re saving from waste: to help us be able to make things and commission others to make things like bike trailers to improve our work 🙂

If you’re interested in any of these roles, please email abundanceHarvestsOxford@gmail.com and say you’re interested in volunteering and call us on 07708776392 or 07751520457 any day after 6pm if you’d like to chat more about the opportunities and helping make our organisation more effective (as well as fun!)

Winter/Spring Volunteering:

 January – April

We’re  looking for volunteers who can give an hour – a few hours per week or even just per month, to help with the following roles during Spring..

What?	How long for	Do I need any experience?
Helping organise/coordinate a pruning skill-share	Between early February and mid-March, you’d be able to spare 4 hours/month to help finalise and promote the pruning skill-shares	–  Social media (facebook, twitter, other promotion channels and blogging) would be useful –  Any mini workshop organisation skills would be useful, but not necessary! It’s easy to pick up along the way & you’ll have some contacts to start you off.
Pruning Fruit Trees across Oxford: leading a pruning session	Between early February and Early April, ideally you’d be able to spare 2-3 hours on a weekend morning (starting from 10:45/11am) every 2-3 weeks.	–   Have attended the pruning fruit trees skill-share or pruned fruit trees before –  Liaise with the coordinator of the pruning skill-shares *FYI being able to/ or feeling comfortable climbing trees is not necessary! However, If you are comfortable climbing and enjoy it, please do let us know.
Helping organise/coordinate a foraging skill-share	Between early March and early June, you’d be able to spare 5 hours/month to help coordinate, finalise and promote foraging skill-shares.	–  Social media (facebook, twitter, other promotion channels and blogging) would be useful –  Any mini workshop organisation skills would be useful, but not necessary! It’s easy to pick up along the way & you’ll have some contacts to start you off.
Sharing foraging know-how in  a workshop/skill-share	Between early March and early June, you’d be able to spare 5 hours/month to plan, help make a hand-out for and run a foraging skill-share.  (or several!) Autumnal foraging skill-shares will start up again in September/October.	–    Know what you want to share skills about well (doesn’t matter if you don’t know lots of different leaves to forage!) –  Be prepared to read up and around what you want to share skills about and make a simple hand-out to share with others – Liaise with the coordinator of the foraging skill-shares

We’re also looking for lovely people to come join in skill-shares and the odd preserving sessions and more: if you’re interested in coming along, email abundanceharvestsoxford@gmail.com and look out for event info on facebook and here.
Children must be accompanied by a responsible adult. Pruning and foraging may not be suitable for younger children.

 ** Check out https://abundanceoxford.wordpress.com/2014/11/10/volunteer-with-abundance/ as well for volunteering opportunities! **

Late Summer/Autumn/Winter [August onwards]: We’re  looking for volunteers who can give a few hours per week or per month to help with the following roles during our upcoming 2015 Harvest Season: see more below!

We’re also looking for lovely people to come join in harvests, preserving sessions and more: if you’re interested in coming along, email abundanceharvestsoxford@gmail.com to join in a harvest and look out for event info on facebook and here, to join in a skill-share (preserve making or other!) All ages welcome! (but children must be accompanied by a responsible adult.)

A few past Harvests & Pressings:
* Apple Pressing on Friday 3rd October (Littlemore) (volunteers needed! Please email AbundanceHarvestsOxford@gmail.com or text 07708776392 to offer to help!)

* Apple Harvest on Saturday 4th October (Jericho area)  (volunteers needed! Please email AbundanceHarvestsOxford@gmail.com or text 07708776392 to offer to help!)

* Apple Harvest in Rosehill tbc (likely to be Sat 4th October)
* Apple Pressing at Hogacre Common Harvest Festival Sunday 5th October (12 – 5pm)
 

If you’re interested in any of these roles, please email abundanceHarvestsOxford@gmail.com and say you’re interested in volunteering and call us on 07708776392 any day after 6pm if you’d like to chat more about the opportunities and helping make our organisation more effective (as well as fun!)