This season, we were fortunate to have TOTE Maritime Alaska as our Adopt-a-Row team at EFN’s Mother Earth Farm! Since they started in March, 27 volunteers have given 222 hours of labor to their three rows of kale.

These volunteers owned this process from the beginning and learned along the way from our experienced farm staff. They seeded, planted, weeded, weeded a little more, and harvested this leafy green to help feed our Pierce County neighbors.

Their work has paid off immensely. So far 120 bins of this delicious crop has gone out to food pantries. We cannot thank them enough for their ongoing commitment this season.

Our farm staff has raved about this groups commitment to the tasks at hand and their ability to have fun while they’re at it. Our Farm Manager, Jesse says, “this boisterous group has grown a beautiful crop of scarlet kale at EFN’s Mother Earth Farm. They have harvested 2,400 pounds of organically grown kale for food pantry partners. They represent truly what it means to be a community farm by bringing their family, friends, and and co-workers to volunteer with them.”

One of their volunteers, Joy, even wrote this sweet poem in reflection of their time growing food for our neighbors:

It has always been TOTE’s practice to help those in need,
Through EFN we grew kale from a tiny seed,

By understanding the hardships and how to work through strife,
Our volunteers reaped the benefits learning the true meaning of life,

We thank EFN for their patience from March to September,
Making the last few months an event to remember.