We love our volunteers! Volunteers are central to the success of our Market and our mission of supporting local farmers and bringing fresh, locally-grown produce to our urban community.  Whether you are able to volunteer for a few hours or on several market days, we have a range of opportunities to suit your schedule.

If you would like to volunteer or get more information, please email Felicity Devlin at proctorfm@yahoo.com or call the market phone at 961-3666.

Volunteer opportunities

Kids’ Activities

To welcome children to the Market, we’d like to have children’s activity sheets—such as a market scavenger hunt, puzzle sheets, pictures to color, etc.—available at the Market Booth each week.   These activities should be based on Market themes and ideally should educate kids about farms and locally-grown produce.   We’d also like to provide kid-friendly recipes using seasonal produce that kids can make at home.  Creating one or more of these activity sheets is a good volunteer opportunity for those who have some education experience and those who would like to volunteer but don’t have time available on Saturdays.

Time commitment:  Whatever you can provide.

Customer Counter

It’s very important that we track the number of patrons coming to the Market.  We need this information to continually improve the Market; it’s also useful when we apply for grants.  Volunteers help us get this data by using a clicker to count the number of customers entering the Market during a ten-minute period at the beginning of each hour.

Time commitment:  10 minutes an hour for a minimum of two ten-minute sessions (allowing lots of time for shopping in between sessions!) during one market in August, September or October.

 
“Doing the Dots” Customer Survey

This is a fun job for those who enjoy interacting with the public.  In a “Doing the Dots” survey, three or four flip charts are set up at one end of the market; each flip chart has one question with several answer options in columns beneath.  Volunteers stand by the charts to engage passing shoppers and offer them dot stickers.  Shoppers are asked to place a dot on the one answer to each question that best matches their response.  This survey helps us get essential customer feedback about the Market.

Time commitment:  One market day in late July or August from 9:00 am to 11:30 am or 11:30 am to 2:00 pm.

Special Events Days

The Proctor Farmers’ Market hosts several special events days each year.  On these days we provide additional entertainment, extra children’s activities, or cooking demonstrations.   Jobs vary according to the event (please call for specifics).

Time commitment:  You could either volunteer from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm (with a break for lunch) or choose a morning shift (9:00 am to 11:30 am) or an afternoon shift (11:30 am to 2:00 pm).   This year, our special events days are June 21, July 19, and September 13.

Market Information Booth

Another fun job if you enjoy interacting with the public.  Folks often stop by the booth to get general information about the Market, to ask how to become a vendor, to inquire about volunteer opportunities, or to peruse market table information.   The Market Manager cannot always be available to staff the booth so we need a volunteer who can be on hand to answer questions, and even more importantly, provide a friendly face at our booth.

Volunteers interested in this position will receive a training to familiarize them with market information and “Frequently Asked Questions.”

Time commitment:  You could either volunteer from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm (with a break for lunch) or choose a morning shift (9:00 am to 11:30 am) or an afternoon shift (11:30 am to 2:00 pm) on as many Saturdays as you wish!

The Market’s Food Stamp Program

We’d like to help community members who qualify for food stamps use their benefits to purchase nutritious fresh fruits and vegetables at the Market.  We’re creating a program that allows people to present their “electronic benefits cards” at the Market booth and receive tokens that can then be used to purchase fresh produce at the market.  To make this program work, we need a volunteer who can use a cell phone to verify the EBT card and give out tokens for the amount requested.

Volunteers interested in this position will receive training in the EBT system.

Time commitment:  You could either volunteer from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm (with a break for lunch) or choose a morning shift (9:00 am to 11:30 am) or an afternoon shift (11:30 am to 2:00 pm) on as many Saturdays as you wish!

 “You Choose” Volunteer

If you have a suggestion for other ways you could volunteer besides the opportunities we’ve listed, please let us know.  We would love to make use of the skills and talents you have to offer!