Trade Your Time for Free Food Fun

Dog Mtn Farm Dinner Sept 26, 2009So I am now one of the statistics: I’ve been Impacted by the Recession. 

I’m not entirely out of a day job, which is a big relief - and very very fortunate - I’m just working reduced hours.  I’m not exactly sure how this is all going to work out, but for the near future, I should be okay with some belt tightening.

Belt-tightening means cutting out unnecessary expenditures, and usually eating out and entertainment are two of the top ones on that list.  In the past, I’ve entered into any periods of extreme frugality with a sort of thin-lipped and dour determination: “No more fun time.”

But with everything I’ve found to do in Seattle through creating both this website and Freeattle, I’m not feeling that way this go-round.  I’ve got two calendars full of possibilities for things to do that cost nothing at all.

One way to experience some food fun for free is to volunteer your time.  Now, this isn’t necessarily always volunteering for a charitable cause, although it can be. Here’s the post I did earlier this year with many different charitable volunteer opportunities here in town (and there’s a few new ones below).  Sometimes you can also volunteer to help out at local businesses, and get to experience things that might otherwise be a bit of a hit to your wallet.

Dog Mtn Farm Dinner Sept 26, 2009For example, I recently volunteered at one of the summer dinners at Dog Mountain Farm in Carnation.  I was put to work as a server, and helped set the tables, bring food to the guests, and clear their dishes.  It was work, for sure, but the volunteers were treated very well.  After the guests were served, we were able to sample some of the wine and the chef’s dishes (in this case, Josh Henderson of Skillet). The dinner was $75 for the guests, and so for the sweat equity, I got a chance to experience something that would otherwise be outside my budget right now.

Those dinners are over for this year, but here are some other chances to volunteer your time, whether to trade sweat equity for an experience that folks usually pay for or to offer your time in return for the good feeling of helping other people.

Be a Farmer for a Day

• Friday, October 9: Help bring in the harvest with One Brick at Marra Farms.
• Seattle Youth Garden Works also has work parties at Marra and in the U-District.
• Saturday, October 24: Spend a work day at the Sixth Annual Teach Out at the Clean Greens Farm in Duvall.
• Saturday, November 7: Visit 21 Acres on for their Sustainable Saturday Series and help out on the farm and learn from a community gardener.
• Also check out Seattle Tilth’s garden volunteer opportunities to help out while increasing your own urban gardening knowledge.

Cooking Class Assistant Opportunities

Is there a cooking topic you'd love to learn more about, but you just don't have the $$ to spring for a cooking class right now?  Consider a volunteer assistant position. 

Assist the teacher, wash dishes, serve the students, and otherwise help with the class process and get the chance to learn as you do.  Here are some of the local schools that offer volunteer assistant positions:

• Cook’s World
• NuCulinary
• PCC
• You can also volunteer to be a cooking class assistant through Solid Ground’s Operation Frontline to help with nutrition classes for low-income families.

Other Opportunities

• PCC offers regular food packaging parties.  Meet up with other volunteers and “bulk foods purchased with PCC Food Bank Program donations from PCC shoppers.”  Check the store near you from the PCC Community Event page.

• Farestart has a few opportunities, including the chance for a group to assist the weekly Guest Chef night and get to enjoy the chef’s creation.  The application notes that these are for groups of 12-15 and are usually booked about a year in advance.  If you don’t want to wait that long or might want to volunteer on your own, check out their other opportunities.

And again, check out the previous Volunteering post for other ways to offer up your time.