One in three people in Maryland face food insecurity. One in right children in the U.S. are unsure when or where their next meal is coming from. It is so easy to ignore issues such as food insecurity, chalking it up to existing only in far-off cities. However, in reality, food insecurity could be affecting those in your very neighborhood.

This year, in order to fulfill their service requirement, the AP Human Geography class traveled to First Fruits Farm. First Fruits Farm is an organization dedicated to providing food for those who need it, from Texas to other states in the Mid-Atlantic region. According to their website, “more than 20 million pounds of [their] fresh produce has been harvested and distributed to food banks, shelters, schools, churches, and other organizations,” (First Fruits Farm). The following article serves as my personal reflection on the experience.

When we first arrived, I was immediately overwhelmed by the vast farmlands which seemed to stretch endlessly. Rows upon rows of crops were growing, all waiting to be harvested, bagged, and delivered to those who need them. As we stepped off the bus, we were greeted by the farm directors, who graciously thanked us for our volunteer work and directed us to sit under a small pavilion. With smiling faces, the directors then proceeded to share the organization’s purpose – providing all families with healthy meals – and discussed the importance of volunteering at organizations that fight food insecurity. They then played a short promotional video in which the owners of the land remarked on how important First Fruits Farm is as “100% of everything the Farm grows is donated in Jesus’ name to feed children and adults who are struggling with hunger and access to healthy food.” Immediately after, we were led to the workshop where other volunteers taught us how to package the potatoes which had been picked the week before.

It was hard work; the bins in which the potatoes were resting were massive and as we slowly chipped our way down through the sheer number of potatoes, it became more and more difficult to reach the potatoes without straining. The bags had to be packaged with the perfect number of potatoes: too many would mean the bag could not be sewn shut and too few would mean the family would not receive the maximum amount of food. We had been instructed to wear long pants in case we were picking foods from the fields, so I began to sweat, straining to reach the bottom corners of the container for the final potatoes as the sun continued to beat down.

However, the day passed quickly, and the work was rewarding. I can vividly remember remarking to those working over the same container, “It’s like a competition! Who can package the most potatoes? Who can finish their container first?” The other volunteers laughed, but I meant it. I wanted to be the first to finish, and I can proudly say that my group was one of the first to finish our container.

We all made many discoveries that day. Whether it was physical, such as a heart or cow-shaped potato, or emotional, we all were impacted by this trip. I, for one, was surprised by how emotional this trip was for me. I was completely shocked to learn how many people within our very state were not receiving the healthy foods they needed. So many children depend on their schools to provide their meals for the day, and often this food is something that can be quickly cooked and distributed, not necessarily the healthy foods a growing child requires.

Physically, I found that although the work was tiring, it was rewarding. As I was locked in a mental competition with the other volunteers, every bag I completed and moved into the pile to be sewn shut made me feel a sense of accomplishment. Every single potato which left my hand that afternoon was going to someone who needed it, someone who looked forwards to First Fruits Farm’s delivery. Although the work was hard, it was all worth it if someone else got to reap the rewards of my work.

Perhaps the most shocking part of my experience at First Fruits Farm was the number of volunteers who wanted to keep returning. First Fruits Farm depends heavily on volunteer work in order to succeed. Along with the 50 other students who were from NDP, there was also a smaller group of younger students from another school. We worked alongside these children to bag the potatoes, and it was touching to observe how the employees from the organization worked to challenge the children to package their potatoes, making sure to answer all of their questions and remind them to take a water break. I certainly would recommend spending some time with First Fruits Farm; it certainly is such an amazing organization to volunteer for!

In short, food insecurity is a problem, something that we all need to work together to fight, but change cannot be accomplished until we are all made aware of this issue. I had such an amazing experience during this trip and feel privileged that I was given this opportunity to apply my education from AP Human Geography to the real world. In the near future, I hope to return to First Fruits Farm in order to continue to make an impact. However, in the meanwhile, continuing to raise awareness for food insecurity in our surrounding communities should be our priority, for no family should ever have to wonder about their next meal and no child should ever go to bed hungry.

Works Cited:

First Fruits Farm Mission Statement. (n.d.). First Fruits Farm. Retrieved October 27, 2022, from https://www.firstfruitsfarm.org/