Rudy Morelos, accounting major, and about 20 others stood on ladders to pick the oranges from CSUN’s Orange Grove along Nordhoff Street. “Food Forward is an organization that likes to help out those in need by going to places that are willing to donate their orchards like at CSUN,” he said. “So instead of having the food wasted, it’s actually collected based on the volunteers who show up, and they turn around and give the food to those in need.”
Max Kanter, volunteer coordinator, said that Food Forward is in partnership with CSUN’s department of Sustainability to pick the fruit that goes to 30 different food banks and pantries in Southern California. They plan to return to CSUN to pick more fruit in a couple of months. “Last April we picked 18,000 pounds of fruit and had over 300 volunteers at CSUN,” he said.
Information on volunteering can be found on their website foodforward.org.
Volunteers gathered in the CSUN orange groves on September 9, to pick the unharvested oranges.The picked oranges were given to Food Forward, a local nonprofit that collects excess produce from home and community gardens.The organization distributes its collected produce to food banks and pantries that work to distribute food to people in need. Photo credit: Kat Russell / Multimedia Editor
Julia Henschel, 14, climbed high into a tree to help pick oranges for Food Forward – a local nonprofit. Julia’s mother, Amy Reichbach, stood below the tree to catch the oranges Julia tossed down to her. Reichbach works as a health educator at the Klotz Student Health Center here at CSUN. Photo credit: Kat Russell / Multimedia Editor
Thomas Navarro, a Pierce College student, picks oranges at CSUN’s Orange Grove. He volunteered through the Food Forward Program which collects and distributes fruit harvested from back yards to give to those who are in need. They provide food for 30 organizations in Southern California such as food banks and food pantries, said the volunteer coodinator. Photo credit: Charlie Kaijo / Assistant Photo Editor
Rudy Morelos, accounting major, climbs one of the trees in the orange grove to pick oranges for the organization Food Forward. Photo credit: Abby Jones / Contributor
