Come and join our Smart Farm located in Barrington at Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital! The Smart Farm donates over 21,000 pounds of produce a year to local food pantries. The farm grows 40-50 crops and 100-150 varieties. There are no animals on the farm.
We are looking for volunteers to provide gardening support to the Smart Farm to help cultivate a healthy, eco-friendly community.
It's a seasonal assignment from April through the end of October.
We have three different roles available:
Smart Farm field support - volunteers help with planting, weeding, watering, harvesting etc. Volunteers come once a week for a 2-4-hour shift Mon - Fri between 7am – 4pm during the months of mid-April through October (weather-dependent). It’s an activity that requires standing, walking and frequently kneeling on your knees. Volunteers don’t drive tractors or operate electrical/motorized equipment.
Smart Farm flower support - volunteers harvest flowers, learning how / when to cut different species; fill buckets with water, gathering supplies; create bouquets.
Smart Farm stands – we offer our produce for sale at a farm stand. The stand is open at the farm every Friday and at the hospital alternating Thursdays (mid-June through mid-October). Volunteers help with produce set-up and take-down, selecting and bagging produce, as well as processing credit card and cash payments.
We accept summer-only volunteers for this role.
Smart Farm volunteers are Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital volunteers and are required to complete our volunteer onboarding process. To learn more and apply, click here.
