Dreary gray skies, misty rain showers, mud-caked boots and August’s suffocating summer heat wasn’t enough to stop our volunteers from choosing to spend their Friday morning at America’s-Grow-a-Row fields collecting 51,600 servings (12,900lbs) of fresh and healthy produce for families in need.
The conditions were less than ideal but the scene was filled with laughter, wholesome conversations and friendly banter as employees filled harvest buckets with everything from plump purple eggplants to juicy Jersey tomatoes.
“We’re always thankful and excited to get out into the field and meet new volunteers. But whenever we see PSE&G on the calendar, we get especially excited,” said a Grow-a-Row staff member. “The level of dedication and joy you all bring is infectious.”
America’s Grow-a-Row is a nonprofit organization with 423 acres across four farm locations. Not only do they grow around 20 varieties of fruits and vegetables at their farms each season, but they also “glean” or rescue “not quite retail-perfect” produce from grocery stores and other farms to donate to feeding organizations across the nation. Additionally, they hope to educate the community about the value of eating healthy and how to help families facing food insecurity, including some of their very own volunteers.
“At a previous event, we had one volunteer in particular who is a mother and was actually one of the recipients of the produce we collect. After collecting, she became emotional and said, ‘I can’t believe how hard these people work for us and they don’t even know me or my family.’ I say this to show what we do together can positively affect lives, and I can’t thank you enough for being a part of it,” said another Grow-a-Row staff member.
With more than 10,000 volunteers each year harvesting on the farm, America’s Grow-a-Row shares our PSEG Foundation’s value of environmental sustainability. We’re thankful for organizations like America’s Grow-a-Row for being a force of positive change to our communities.
Want to volunteer for a harvest? Click here to learn more about America’s Grow-a-Row and how you can volunteer to help our communities, too.