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This job expired on April 06, 2018

Open Farms Internship Open Arms of MN

  • Date Posted February 05, 2018
  • Location Minneapolis, MN
  • Category Agriculture / Nonprofit
  • Job type Internship/Apprentice
Company description

With Open Arms, we nourish body, mind and soul

It's a simple notion: people who are sick should not be without food. Yet every day people in our community with life-threatening illnesses find themselves unable to shop or cook and, often, without the support network to help.

That's where we come in. Open Arms of Minnesota is a nonprofit that cooks and delivers free, nutritious meals to people living with life-threatening illnesses in the Twin Cities. 

We believe that food is medicine, and our work matters to the health outcomes of our clients. With the help of over 6,000 volunteers, we'll cook and deliver more than 600,000 delicious meals this year to people living with cancer, HIV/AIDS, multiple sclerosis and ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), as well as their caregivers and dependents.

Since our founding in 1986, Open Arms has relied on its phenomenal community of donors and volunteers to help nourish and sustain people living with illness in the Twin Cities. We couldn't do the work we do in our beautiful kitchen, on delivery to our clients or at our organic farm project without them. Join us in making a difference in our community!

Our Program-

Healthy, nutritious meals- cooked and delivered for free

Our Twin Cities clients receive a weeks worth of meals at a time, including breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. We believe that food is medicine, and eating delicious, nutritious meals helps make our clients medicines and treatments more effective so they are able to lead healthier, more independent lives.

With that goal in mind, our chef and dietitian work together to create a variety of menus that not only meet the nutrition needs of our clients diseases, but also taste delicious. All of our food is cooked in-house (with the exception of items such as crackers, granola bars and breakfast cereal)including all breads and baked breakfast items. We include sustainably produced, local and organic ingredients wherever possible. In fact, we've planted urban gardens that produce lots of tasty veggies for our kitchen.

Internship description
Internship Description:
The Open Farms Intern will work side by side with the Farm Program Coordinator at our urban farm sites to complete many tasks over the course of the growing season. Internship focus will be on bed preparation, direct seeding, vegetable production, composting, weeding/cultivation, transplanting, harvesting and post-harvest handling with a focus on food safety and risk minimization. Whenever possible, time will also be allotted to facilitate projects related to the intern’s specific area of interest.  The Open Farms intern will also assist the Farm Coordinator weekly with our Community Supported Agriculture program. 
 
A commitment of 10-20 hours a week for 2-6 months for a total of 240 hours is required. This is an unpaid internship, however there are many educational and networking opportunities available to interns as well as access to fresh produce and free snacks/meals when we are at the building. Interns will also have an opportunity to experience the day-to-day operations of our organization by taking part in a kitchen shift and/or delivery, assisting with outreach, and/or supporting at one of our many events. 
 
Desired Qualifications:
• Passion for the mission of Open Arms
• Strong communication skills and outstanding ability to maintain and foster relationships to ensure success working with a diverse base of volunteers
• Ability to be part of a team and to maintain effective communication with other interns and staff members
• Flexibility to work weekday mornings and afternoons as well as occasional evenings and some Saturdays
• Interest in organic farming, gardening, food justice and local food systems
• Previous farm experience preferred
• Must have a positive attitude, an ability to receive constructive criticism and a strong work ethic
• Comfortable working alone at times and be able to follow both written and verbal directions
• Able to identify basic vegetable plants and differentiate from basic weeds 
• Must be reliable, responsible and hard working
• Must be willing and comfortable working with large groups
• Must have reliable transportation
• Must have reliable transportation
• Knowledge of basic carpentry skills 

 Physical Requirements:
• Experience using various garden tools including but not limited to garden shovels, soil rakes, hoes, broadforks, pitchforks, trowels, etc.
• Early morning starter in good physical condition
• Amenable to getting dirty, sweaty and wet; interns will be working in all types of weather
• Ability to crouch, lean, stoop and carry
• Ability to navigate steps on uneven ground
• Physical ability to work daily with hands, wrists and back and to lift approximately 50 lbs.  

Reports To: Farm Program Coordinator

Farm Locations: 
2645 14th Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55404     
668 Victoria Street S, Saint Paul, MN 55103
860 Otto Ave, Saint Paul, MN 55103
Compensation this position is : college credit, barter
Application instructions
This job expired on April 06, 2018
Deadlineno deadline

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