Sharon Brown started off at Evergreen Brick Works this spring volunteering at Doors Open and hasn’t stopped since.  Although not a morning person at heart, Sharon now looks forward to sunrise on Saturday mornings, when she can be a Weekend Program Assistant and help with set-up, greeting visitors, waste education and even traffic.

Why volunteer? I’d stumbled across the site on my way to work and started to soak up the nature in the park. When I discovered the programs going on, I had to get involved.  I get to meet people, learn, be an integral part of how it all works and have fun! This is the first time in my volunteering life that I’ve been able to be part of such a diverse team of men and women of different ages and backgrounds. It’s been a wonderful experience.

What I’ve learned: It’s been eye-opening – it’s the first time I’ve eaten food that has tasted so good.  I LOVE the farmers and I’m so grateful to them for growing our food.  I know so much more about local food, as well as sustainability.  I’ve had the chance to go to some workshops too and learn about bees and edible plants and have such a greater awareness now I can’t help sharing it with others.

Super-hero moment: A couple of times at the height of parking lot construction, the TTC bus wasn’t able to come right up the driveway. When I saw it approach on the first run of the day, I got right out there and literally stopped the bus and with (Evergreen’s manager of sustainability) Robert, we were able to help the driver navigate safely.

My other life: I’m a Customs Officer by night. I’m looking forward to a trip to Italy when I hope to connect with farms and farmers while practicing my Italian.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010 at 9:32 am and is filed under Events, Evergreen Brick Works, Food, Volunteer. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.