The mission of Community Action of Skagit County in Sedro-Woolley is to foster and advocate for self-sufficiency among low-income people in Skagit County. We care about the entire community and we are dedicated to helping people help themselves and each other. Our agency has over 35 anti-poverty programs with seven impact areas: 1) Housing, 2) Employment, 3) Education and Literacy, 4) Financial Stability, 5) Health and Family Stability, 6) Food and Nutrition, and 7) Volunteerism/Community Engagement. The 2020 VISTA Summer Associate (SA) will enhance the partnerships between Community Action, St. Charles Catholic Church, Tri Parish Food Bank and the Youth Migrant Project (YMP). The SA will not only ensure that YMP volunteers are engaged gleaning crops that will be eaten by hungry children and families, they will assist with Community Action’s summer meals sponsorship program to encourage the use of gleaned produce. The Summer Associate through Harvest Against Hunger will strengthen local connections, ensuring that hungry children and families living in poverty are fed healthy meals throughout the summer. Additionally, the SA will assist in executing the produce deliveries through Farm to Food Pantry produce contracts. Project Background: Harvest VISTA, a program of Harvest Against Hunger, connects local growers, food banks and volunteers to secure fresh produce for distribution to thousands of people throughout Washington State. Harvest VISTA program finds new and innovative ways to decrease waste of fresh fruits and vegetables and increase the availability of nutritious produce to food bank clients. HAH partners with the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) to place AmeriCorps VISTA members at hunger relief organizations to start or continue existing produce recovery projects. Now in its tenth year, Harvest VISTA program has AmeriCorps VISTA members placed at host sites around Washington State on produce recovery projects.

Member Duties : The Summer Associate (SA) will further the access of local produce for food-insecure populations in Skagit County by sustaining the gleaning projects that support food pantries, and meal programs. The SA will coordinate gleanings activities which include managing volunteers, harvest training, leading volunteer groups to harvest and collecting and transporting harvest products. The SA will also track data for harvested products. The SA will also improve and build sustainable methods into the program by meeting with collaborators, presenting possible improvements for coordination of volunteers and suggesting improvements for the 2020 season as well as organizing information.