Focus Area
Agriculture & Food Systems Volunteering in Central Oregon
Matching organizations, in a different order on every visit
The Giving Plate is a Bend food pantry offering dignified, choice-based food relief. Guests shop for free at its Community Store, children pick their own food at the Kid's Korner Market, a mobile pantry bus reaches rural communities, and weekend food packs go to students in Bend-La Pine schools. In 2024 it served more than 97,000 people and distributed nearly 1 million pounds of food.
Volunteers sort donations and produce, assemble orders, and unload trucks at the distribution center; drive or ride along on food pickups around Bend (clean driving record required); help at food drives and special events; and collect and sort food during Bend Food Project drives. Ongoing volunteers apply online, and school, work, and court-ordered service hours are welcome (16-hour minimum).
Heritage Apple Corps, a fiscally sponsored project of Discover Your Northwest, is a volunteer-run initiative to revive, protect, and maintain Central Oregon's pioneer-era fruit trees, planted by homesteading families more than a century ago on what is now the Crooked River National Grassland and other public lands. Working with the U.S. Forest Service and community partners, it restores historic orchards, runs a public Heritage Fruit Tree Registry with DNA-identified varieties, and is establishing a preservation orchard so these living pieces of local history survive.
Volunteers restore and protect historic homestead orchards on public lands: clearing brush and juniper to reduce fire risk and free up water for old trees, hands-on pruning and tree care at restoration workshops and field days, propagating cuttings for a living preservation orchard, and helping document heritage trees. No experience needed; arborists and orchardists teach techniques on site.
Around the Bend Farms is a Central Oregon nonprofit farm working to increase access to fresh, locally grown, nutrient-dense food. From its Braided Roots farm in Deschutes River Woods south of Bend and its AVO farm in Madras, it runs a CSA program, builds custom gardens, and through its Grow Hope, Nourish Community effort grows food for neighbors who need it most.
Farm volunteers get their hands in the soil at the Braided Roots farm in Deschutes River Woods and the AVO farm in Madras, helping with seeding, planting, weeding, harvesting, and other seasonal work that turns seeds into food for neighbors. Individuals and groups are welcome, including workplace volunteer days. Start by completing the volunteer interest form.
Central Oregon's first nonprofit cannery, launched in 2025 to reduce farm food waste and fight food insecurity. It collects surplus produce from area farms that markets can't absorb and turns it into healthy, shelf-stable jams, sauces, pickled vegetables, and soups, supporting local growers while getting local food to families year-round.
Volunteers help glean and collect surplus produce from local farms, prep and process fruits and vegetables in canning sessions, label and package finished goods, and support distribution to food access partners, plus outreach and fundraising events.
Tumalo Lavender
also known as Tumalo Lavender Farm
Tumalo Lavender is a working lavender farm in Tumalo, northwest of Bend, growing lavender on-site and making bath, body, culinary, and home products sold at its farm store and online. The farm welcomes visitors for U-cut lavender, workshops, yoga, and seasonal events, and each September invites the community to its volunteer harvest day.
At the annual Volunteer Harvest Day in September, family and friends drop in anytime during the day to help cut lavender and celebrate the end of the season on the farm. It's a relaxed, family-friendly way to spend a few hours outside, with RSVPs through the farm's event calendar.
WWOLF
also known as Willing Workers On Local Farms
WWOLF (Willing Workers On Local Farms) is Central Oregon Locavore's volunteer farm-day program. It sends packs of volunteers to spend a day helping on local farms and ranches with planting, harvesting, and other critical tasks, creating hands-on learning for volunteers while supporting local food production and building relationships between producers and residents. Recent host farms include Windy Acres, Rainshadow Organics, and D&D Ranch.
Join a WWOLF "pack" for a day on a local farm, helping with planting, harvesting, weeding, and other seasonal farm tasks alongside the farmers who grow Central Oregon's food. No farming experience is needed. Watch the WWOLF page for upcoming farm days and register when a new one is posted.
Rural Oregon Community Foundation
also known as ROCF, Crooked River Roundup Foundation
The Rural Oregon Community Foundation, which also does business as the Crooked River Roundup Foundation, is a Prineville nonprofit dedicated to preserving the Western Way of Life. It awards scholarships to Central Oregon students pursuing careers in ranching, agriculture, farming, rodeo, and animal health, runs youth programs like Boots and Roots for local fourth and fifth graders, and hosts community events such as the Fall Cowboy Gathering of Western music and cowboy poetry. Its annual Dinner & Dance kicks off Crooked River Roundup week.
Volunteers, including many local FFA and 4-H students, help run the foundation's annual Dinner & Dance fundraiser that kicks off Roundup week, and support youth programs like Boots and Roots and community events like the Fall Cowboy Gathering.
Seed to Table works to increase health and wellness across Central Oregon through equitable access to locally grown, farm-fresh produce and hands-on farm education. Started in 2013 by Sisters High School graduate Audrey Tehan with the Sisters Science Club, it now runs a four-acre farm in Sisters, grows and distributes produce to people of all income levels, including local food banks, brings thousands of students, including partner classes from Warm Springs, to the farm for nutrition and science education, and manages the Sisters Farmers Market.
Volunteers work alongside staff on the four-acre farm, planting, weeding, harvesting, and washing and packing produce for families and food banks; help with farm field trips for visiting students; staff the Sisters Farmers Market, which Seed to Table manages; and help put on the annual Fall Harvest Dinner. No farming experience needed.
The Deschutes County 4-H Association supports 4-H youth development in Deschutes County in partnership with Oregon State University Extension. 4-H clubs give young people hands-on learning in areas like livestock and animal science, foods, textiles, and STEM, building leadership and life skills through club projects, events, and the Deschutes County Fair.
Adult volunteers serve as club and project leaders, teaching youth in areas like livestock, foods, textiles, and STEM, plus event volunteers for the county fair. Leader training and background checks are required through OSU Extension.
The Crooked River Weed Management Area is a partnership of landowners, agencies, and organizations working to prevent and control invasive, noxious weeds across the Crooked River basin to protect rangelands, farms, and native habitat.
Volunteers join weed pulls and invasive plant removal days and help with outreach and education about identifying and controlling noxious weeds.
The Sisters Farmers Market, managed by Seed to Table, brings local farmers, food producers, and makers together with the community each week during the growing season, making fresh, locally grown food accessible in Sisters and supporting the region's small farms.
Market volunteers help set up and take down, staff the information booth, support vendors and food-access programs, and help with market-day events and activities, working alongside Seed to Table staff.
Central Oregon Veterans Ranch
also known as COVR
Central Oregon Veterans Ranch is a working ranch near Bend where veterans find community, purpose, and healing, offering housing and care for aging veterans in a peaceful rural setting and hands-on farm, garden, and animal work for veterans of all ages.
Community volunteers keep the working ranch running: providing meals for veteran workdays and partner gatherings, admin and outreach help, technical (IT) support, gardening and greenhouse work, and seasonal workdays such as roadside clean-ups and garden teardown. Veterans can join weekly veteran-led workdays on the ranch, covering harvest, garden and project work, followed by a community lunch.
You haven't seen them all yet. There are more organizations below.