Volunteer at the MN State Fair’s Healthy Local Food Exhibit!

SIGN UP TO VOLUNTEER: CLICK HERE!

Love cooking, local food, and farmers? Renewing the Countryside is looking for volunteers for our 2019 Healthy Local Food exhibit in the Eco Experience building for the MN State Fair. We would love to have you there! Volunteer shifts are 3.5 hours long, with shifts ranging from 9:00am to 7:30pm, August 22 to September 2. Invite your friends, family and co-workers, and sign up! More details and your tickets will be mailed out to you after you sign up.

As a volunteer you will receive one admittance ticket to the State Fair for the day you volunteer, an organic cotton t-shirt and the opportunity to learn more and spread the word about local organic foods!

VOLUNTEER REQUIREMENTS:

• Volunteers must be 16 years of age or older
• Must be able to stand on your feet for 2-3 hours at a time
• Friendly and enjoy talking to people
• Excited about local food!
• Conversant in English
• New this year, we would like to invite all volunteers to attend a one-hour training and preview session on Wednesday, 8/23 from 5:30 - 7pm at the Eco Experience exhibit hall in the fairgrounds. Your attendance is not mandatory but highly encouraged!

SHIFTS & TIMING:

9:00am – 12:30pm *Use the rear entrance of the building to enter before 9am.

12:30pm – 4:00pm

4:00pm – 7:30pm

Please arrive 10-15 minutes before your shift starts. This will allow us to give you a brief orientation and give you some time to change into your t-shirt. Please plan ahead for slow traffic and shuttles during the fair.

VOLUNTEER ROLES:

Cooking Demo and Sampling Helper (2 per shift)

Help guest chefs and farmers prepare food samples and pass out food samples and recipes; encourage visitors to explore the exhibit. Please note that our chef demos take place at 11am, 1pm and 3pm, so we focus on sampling during the evening shift.

Kid’s Activity Helper (2 per shift)

Oversee children’s coloring activity, trivia wheel, temporary tattoos, and “Veggie 500” races; encourage visitors to participate in the exhibit.

Exhibit Host (1-2 per shift)

Greet visitors who enter the exhibit and explain what is offered. Encourage them to participate in exhibit activities such as cooking demonstrations, local food sampling, exhibit displays, CSA farm learning stations, and children’s learning activities.

GETTING THERE:

Please report to the Progress Center/EcoExperience Building, which is located near the North-East corner of the fairgrounds, at the intersection of Cosgrove St. and Randall Ave. If you use the main Fairgrounds entrance on Snelling Ave., take a right on Cosgrove St (very first right), and the Progress Center will be directly ahead of you. You can view a map of the fairgrounds on the MN State Fair website.

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU ARRIVE:

If you have the 9:00am shift, please come in through the back doors of the building (East side). All other shifts, come in the main door of the building (by the wind turbine blade) and turn right – we are right inside to the right under the “Healthy Local Foods” sign. Find the exhibit manager, who will be wearing a navy blue Farm to School ninja t-shirt, who will give you orientation/instructions for your shift.

TICKETS:

Don't forget to bring them – we can’t guarantee that we will have extras if you don’t. If for some reason you are not able to make it to your shift, please send your ticket back to Renewing the Countryside, 2637 27th Ave S, Suite 17. Minneapolis MN 55406.

WHAT TO BRING:

Dress for the heat: Pants or reasonable length shorts/skirt that allow for you to move comfortably for a full day at the fair! We’ll provide a t-shirt to you – sizes Women’s M – XXL (they run really small) and Men’s S-XXL.
Comfortable shoes. Since you may be working with food, please be sure to wear shoes with a closed toe and closed heel.
Stay hydrated! We suggest bringing a water bottle to keep yourself hydrated. There is a filtered water dispenser near the bathrooms in our building
Bags, backpacks and other personal items may be inspected by fair staff upon entry. There is room backstage at our exhibit for you to store personal items during the fair. Please note, the refrigerators are for chefs, samplers and Peace Coffee only.

TRANSPORTATION/PARKING:

You will need to provide your own transportation to the fair and parking. Keep in mind that traffic is heavy and parking is very tight. Biking to the fair is simple and the Fair operates three security monitored bike corrals every day of the fair from 6am until midnight. MetroTransit runs regular service to the fairgrounds via routes 3, 84, and 960. The State Fair also operates express bus service to the fair from 17 locations around the Twin Cities. **Please also check for construction delays and closures:http://www.mnstatefair.org/general_info/get_here/construction.html

CONTACT:

If you have any questions email or call Eli Goodwell, [email protected] or 612-208-8354.