As a non-profit, educational farm, Sweetwater relies on the help of individual and group volunteers to help us with the day to day operations of our community farm. Volunteers of all ages and backgrounds have the opportunity to learn and gain hands-on organic farming experience. All are welcome to volunteer; including groups, student clubs, businesses, and individuals. (Volunteers under age 16 must be accompanied by an adult. More info below.)
Volunteers can assist with a variety of farm tasks such as planting, harvesting, and weeding. There are also site projects for those with carpentry and electrical skills. Or if you just enjoy cooking, cleaning, photography, painting, sewing, teaching, or any other past time let’s talk about how you can help!
Sweetwater is currently 100% volunteer run and supported. Thank you for your support and assistance.
All volunteers are required to wear close-toed shoes. Bring anything you’ll need for working outdoors (hat, gloves, etc.). Please apply any sunscreen or bug spray before you reach the farm. Bring PLENTY OF WATER to drink! You may also bring food to eat at our picnic tables. We have a refrigerator and microwave for volunteer and staff use.
Please DO NOT bring valuables to the farm. We do not offer a place to lock up your things. There is a locker where you may keep things like car keys or non-valuable items. Things left in this office are at your own risk.
Our farmers start their day at 9:00am. Please meet them in the main barn at that time so that you can be part of the morning meeting to determine what projects will be worked on and who will be doing what. So please contact us if you plan to arrive at a later time so we can discuss how to coordinate with you.
Volunteers should park off of Hanley/Comanche. Please do not park in the designated handicapped parking lot, or on the east side of Comanche Avenue in front of the property or our neighbors houses. (You may get towed.) There is no parking allowed inside the gates on Sweetwater property.
Click Here for parking directions!
If you reach the farm and the gate is closed, it may be because you are a little early or a little late to meet the farmers at 9:00 am. If you are on time, it may be that only one of the two entrances has been opened. (There is a gate entrance on the north side of the property on Comanche Avenue and a gate on the south side of the property on Mohawk Avenue.) Drive to the other entrance to see if it is open. If both entrances are locked wait for another 5 minutes to see if anyone shows up. Try calling the farm office to see if anyone answers 813-887-4066. If all else fails, it probably means we got our wires crossed and you are at the farm when we are closed. Or it may mean that you missed us and will need to try again another day. Keep in mind, we do our best to work with our volunteers, but we are a working farm and cannot always accommodate everyone’s schedules.
Generally speaking, the younger kids don’t do as well out in the fields unless the parent is almost literally on top of them watching every move! It does not take much to get off track and accidentally step on a plant or pull something that is not a weed. If you would like to explore the farm with your child a better option may be to come out to a Sunday Market and walk the grounds or join a free farm tour (see events page for upcoming tours.)
Another option for younger kids is to come out on a Sunday morning about 10:00-10:30 am and wash the veggies that are harvested from the fields. The kids usually love to help with this and if they get bored, there is plenty of room to run around a bit or dig in the dirt.
General Age Requirements:
Older kids are welcome to work in the fields with close parent supervision and with the Farm Manager’s approval. Kids age 16 and older may volunteer on their own without adult supervision. However, a Volunteer Form – Non Member 15-16 must be filled out with a parent/guardian phone number where they may be reached in case of emergency or in the event the child’s behavior is not conducive to working on the farm.
Yes we have many high school and college students who elect to complete their school service hours at Sweetwater. The age rules (above) still apply. Students must be 16 or older to volunteer on their own. Please note that some of the farm work we do will be at The Children’s Home location off of Memorial Highway so your child must have transportation to get there. Make sure to leave an emergency contact number where you can be reached. If there is paperwork that needs to be signed, we are happy to do that once the volunteer hours are complete each day.
It is very helpful if you are able to do fill out a wavier before you come in. You only have to fill it out once per season. Below are printable versions of the Volunteer Form. Please note one is for CSA members and the other is for non-members.
Sweetwater has many groups that join us to volunteer as well. If your work or community group would like to coordinate a day to help out, please Contact Us so we can schedule a time for you.
Yes! We have plenty of opps throughout the Season. We have several events during the year where we need help with all sorts of things like setting tables, food prep, serving, ticket tables, parking help, and clean up. On a regular basis we can almost always use help cleaning the common areas of the farm such as the kitchen and bathrooms. We love to have volunteers cook lunch or goodies for our farmers (email us and then bring the food in.) If you are a seasoned member, we can use your help at the CSA table to help newer members. If you have special talents such as photography, painting, sewing, computer work, electrical or construction work, fundraising, teaching, or just love to work with kids… let us know what you can do and we’ll try and work with you.
We actually have a volunteer “Volunteer Coordinator”! This volunteer works during our Season (Nov-May) to help coordinate the many requests and questions we receive about our volunteer program. The Volunteer Coordinator works from home to answer your emails the best that they can. They can be reached through the Contact Form by choosing “Volunteer.”
Most of your questions can be answered by reading through all of the information contained on this web page and most volunteer days you can just “show up” without coordinating with anyone (as long as you arrive by 9am). If you still need more info, please feel free to Contact Us so we can direct you.
Time is short and we understand that not all Members will be able to volunteer the 4 hours per season that we ask for. However, we do count on those 4 hours to help us keep our costs down and our community growing. As an alternative to working the hours, Members may “buy out” of their hours by paying a $30 fee (cash or check accepted). Volunteer fees should be paid to our Farm Manager or Program Director. Or Members may opt to donate a gift card for one of our event raffles or for use at the farm. We prefer local restaurants, health food stores, office supply, local gift stores and local services. (All gift cards should be valued at $25 or more. Please indicate the amount on the card.) Contact us if you are not sure if a particular gift card would be appropriate.
The best way is to sign up for our weekly newsletter. The newsletter provides info on all the upcoming events, important information about the farm, and special volunteer opportunities. You can sign up by entering your email address in the “Join our Mailing List” box on the right side of this page and clicking on the arrow. Or if you don’t wish to sign up, simply bookmark this page of our website and check back with us on a weekly basis for updates.
We also need “Harvest Leaders” who get trained to help lead the harvest on our busy Sunday mornings. If you can volunteer on Sundays on a regular basis (weekly, monthly or whatever you can do), we can train you on our harvesting techniques, so you can teach other volunteers what to do. If you’re interested, just let us know the next time you come in!
We have specific projects that come up from time to time that require special skills, materials, or extra time from our volunteers. Sign up for our Volunteer Newsletter to receive updates on volunteer opportunities helping with special projects. Or contact us if you have a special skill or equipment you think might benefit the farm.
For more information about volunteering on the farm, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator.
Click here for Parking instructions.