Crop Mob for Flood Relief, Disaster Cleanup!

Participants in the 2011 Sustainable Community Challenge, one of IC's incoming freshman Jumpstart programs, weed some snapdragons during their crop mob at West Haven Farm in Ithaca.

From Ithaca Crop Mob:

As you all know, some areas of New York experienced some disastrous flooding from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee this season. Though the Ithaca area was not as hard-hit, other areas nearby have faced some tremendous damage.

In the spirit of regional self-reliance and interdependence, community-supported-

agriculture, and neighbor-helping-neighbor, the Ithaca Crop Mob is joining with other organizations to send out a call for volunteers to help our nearby farms get back on their feet.

Community Clean-Up Day at Engelbert Farms 

Join FaHN and the Rural Health Network to help with clean-up at Engelbert Farms, 182 Sunnyside Rd, Nichols, NY.  The clean will take place on Friday, October 7 from 9:00am-4:00pm and will include a potluck lunch. Please RSVP to Josie Maroney at jmaroney@rhnscny.org or (607) 692-7669.  We request an RSVP so that we can adequately plan, provide you with necessary details and safety procedures, and ensure a productive workday.

Engelbert Farms is a very long-standing and respected farm in this region. In fact, if you saw Kevin Engelbert give the farmer keynote at the NOFA-NY Winter Conference last year, you probably remember Kevin's touching story about how it was the first organic dairy farm in New York.
Let's work together to get there!
If you email us at ithacacropmob@gmail.com with your location and number of seats in your vehicle or people needing rides, we can connect you with others for carpooling from the Ithaca area. Sharing rides makes driving much more efficient and FUN! Together we can send a delegation of Ithacans to Engelbert.

If you cannot make this workday, but still wish to lend a hand, here are some other farms that could also use some help (thanks to Lea Kone at NOFA-NY for providing this list). If you'd like to help out one of these farms, we ask that you contact them to see when and how you can help.

Neversink Farm is in Claryville - next to the Neversink Reservoir is in some serious need.
Kate and Conor Crickmore:
Phone: 845-985-2519
farmer@neversinkfarm.com
http://www.neversinkfarm.com/
 
J & A Farm
Jeff and AdinaIndiana Road
Goshen , NY 10924
jabialasfarm@live.com
http://jabialasfarm.com
 
Lucky Dog Farms
Richard Giles & Holly White
35796 State Hwy 10
Hamden, NY 13782
607-746-9898
luckdogorganic@gmail.com
 
West Wind Farms
141 Verbeck Ave Schaghticoke,NY 12154
(518) 753-779

Remember, we are all in this together! Misfortune that befalls one of us affects all of us. Let's join hands and build a safety net across NY!

The idea behind crop mobbing is getting a group of people who wish to lend a hand on a farm, using their manpower to get a bunch of work done that would otherwise take a long time. It brings people together, helps grow local food, and is fun even if you don't have much gardening or farming experience. A lot of the time a lunch from the farm is provided, or they are potluck style.

If you'd like to join the Ithaca Crop Mob mailing list to hear about all the crop mob opportunities (they are usually closer to Ithaca) throughout the year, click here.