Each Thursday, a rotating group of roughly 40 volunteers gathers at the Gainesville Giving Garden, a community-led nonprofit farm that grows and donates fresh food in Alachua County to aid the underserved community.
Meg Boria-Meyer, the Gainesville Giving Garden founder and executive director, gathers volunteers into a circle under the late-afternoon sun. About two dozen people step closer, their hands eager to get to work. She gives the first-timers the gist: various community ongoings, the recent Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program unease, other volunteer activities and local events.
“Does anyone want to add anything to the circle?” she asks…