HPW Internship: Central Rivers Farmshed

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HPW Student Internship Experience – Brody VanDeventer 16′
Interning at Central Rivers Farmshed has been both an exciting and rewarding experience. Working with Farmshed I have been able to meet and talk with so many community members and business, such as the National Wellness Institute (NWI) and Sentry. During the first few weeks I did a lot of planning. I helped put in place polices for both Farmshed and it’s new community kitchen. I was able to utilize my knowledge and skills in the kitchen and with nutrition to help design a program that would teach children how to cook and eat whole foods. I also used these skills to design and facilitate a lunch n’ learn for the NWI. Going through the HPW program at UWSP I learned very quickly that health promotion had many moving parts. Working at Farmshed I have been lucky to see many of these pieces. I was able to see it from a business perspective, community member, employee and most importantly as someone who is trying to make a difference in the community. One of the greatest lessons I have learned at UWSP is that each person is a small part in a very large community. At Farmshed I was able to
accomplish many small things that I hope can make a big difference. My biggest project would be Frozen Assets. I have helped do everything from planning, producing product, and even building a walk in freezer! Frozen Assets represents sustainability and buying local foods to support local farmers. It also provides the community with nutritious food all winter long. I would never have believed that in a one week span I would have created promotional material, built a freezer, and then processed 450 lbs. of summer squash. This internship has allowed me to change the behavior of the community one small step at a time. In conclusion, I have the knowledge and skills gained from my years in HPW combined with the experience from this internship. Whether it is creating brochures, handouts, communicating with community members, running a shared kitchen, or even building a freezer, after my internship with Farmshed is over I feel confident that I am ready to make my contribution to community wellness.

Objectives

Objective 1: Expand avenues for consumers to affordably, easily and conveniently access local and sustainable food options
Objective 2: Build a learning community around food preservation for year-round local eating
Objective 3: Document and expand participation in the local food economy
Objective 4: Support small, local, diversified farms
Objective 5: Grow and add value to Farmshed membership

  1. Behavior:
    1. Create access to seasonal products for community members through the Local Food Buying Club
    2. Provide resources on preservation methods for long-term storage and cooking of product by conducting workshops in the Farmshed community kitchen
    3. Promote healthy lifestyles by encouraging local vegetable consumption, community involvement, outdoor activity, environmental consciousness and a strong local economy
    4. Evaluate current and new club members and farms using various survey methods
  2. Promotion and Marketing:
    1. Maintain appropriate social media and the organization’s website
    2. Market Farmshed/CPS partnership canned goods
    3. Promote the Farmshed Local Food Buying Club to Farmshed members and non-members and farms
  3. Administration/Organizational Experiences:
    1. Work with Kitchen Coordinator in Local Food Buying Club
    2. Work with chef on advanced sessions in the Farmshed community kitchen
    3. Prepare, schedule, and lead food safety training for workers’ shares
    4. Keep records to orders coming in through the Local Food Buying Club
    5. Attend bi-monthly board, monthly club, and weekly staff meetings

On-Site Supervisor
Layne Cozzolino
Executive Director
1220 Briggs Court
Stevens Point, WI 54481
layne@farmshed.org
715-544-5154

Hours
Approximately 25 hours per week/400 hours total – Flexible

Stipend
CRI Program: $10/hour for minimum of 150 hours

UW-Stevens Point Students Who Completed Internship

  • Fabian Bogdan, Spring 2017 (pictured above)
  • Brody VanDeventer, Summer 2016
  • Gregory Petz, Spring 2016
  • Kinsey Mathsen, Spring 2018
  • Katrina Hittner, Spring 2012