Calendar of Events

Looking to get involved, stay active, and meet some new friends? Sand Hill Community Garden workdays take place on Wednesdays (6-8 p.m.) and Saturdays (10 a.m.-noon) from Feb. 27-Oct. 30, 2021, at Buncombe County Sports Park. The garden is located on 16 Apac Dr. in West Asheville/Enka-Candler.

Join friends and neighbors as they come together on common ground to raise fresh, organic vegetables and fruits for the Enka community.

Expect to wear a mask and maintain social distance throughout. Tools and hand sanitizer are available, but any gloves, loppers, pruners, or gardening tools you can bring will decrease the amount of contact between volunteers. Please wear work clothes to get dirty and closed-toe shoes. Sunscreen, water, and a hat are also handy items to have on hand.

Sand Hill Community Garden has been growing fresh produce since 2011 and raised over 1,200 lbs. of organic produce last year.

NOTE: Community workdays are weather dependent. Please join the community garden email list (send your info to [email protected]) to stay up on workday tasks and other garden news.

To receive the I Heart Parks monthly newsletter, sign up online. Follow Buncombe County Recreation on Facebook and Instagram for the latest updates.

Our Ideal Volunteer Tutor

The ideal volunteer tutor is someone seeking to make a one-year commitment of two hours per week to help someone else make the change of a lifetime. For our volunteer tutors, an education background is helpful, but not necessary. The most important qualities are patience, an open mind, and resourcefulness. Tutors also need to be non-judgmental and sensitive to cultural differences. A GED or high school diploma is required. Ideal tutors enjoy seeing concrete outcomes from their efforts and sharing in the life-changing successes of others. See our full tutor position description here.

Five Steps to Become a Tutor

1. Contact Literacy Together. Sign up online, call (828)254-3442 or email [email protected] to let us know you are interested in becoming a volunteer. We will get back to you within two business days.

2. Attend orientation. Orientations for the Adult Literacy or English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) programs are held every month. Youth Literacy orientations are held at various dates and times in the month before Youth Literacy training, which typically takes places over two weeks during the summer.

3. Attend tutor training. Sign up for training at the end of the orientation session. Adult Literacy or ESOL tutors receive 15 hours of training. Youth Literacy tutors receive 30 hours of training.

4. Get matched with a student. The program director for your chosen program will match you with a student or small group of students who corresponds to your preferences. The program director will set the date, time, and location of your first meeting. After that, you will schedule your tutoring sessions directly with your student.

5. Start tutoring. Meet with your student(s) for at least two hours per week for a minimum of one year. Share your success stories with us, attend periodic in-service trainings to freshen up your skills, and proctor annual tests for your student.

Equity underlies everything we do. We serve immigrants, low-wealth, and disadvantaged individuals of every age. We know that literacy is the primary determinant of health, employment, income levels, and constructive self-expression. In 2017, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) found that sixty percent of children nationwide are not reading proficiently. Without intervention children who do not read proficiently become adults with low literacy and the cycle continues. Our one-on-one and small group tutoring is free and based on students’ schedules, making it accessible to those who would otherwise be unable to afford or attend traditional classroom settings.

Our Ideal Volunteer Tutor

The ideal volunteer tutor is someone seeking to make a one-year commitment of two hours per week to help someone else make the change of a lifetime. For our volunteer tutors, an education background is helpful, but not necessary. The most important qualities are patience, an open mind, and resourcefulness. Tutors also need to be non-judgmental and sensitive to cultural differences. A GED or high school diploma is required. Ideal tutors enjoy seeing concrete outcomes from their efforts and sharing in the life-changing successes of others. See our full tutor position description here.

Literacy Together (formerly Literacy Council of Buncombe County) has a determined group of students waiting for volunteer tutors so they can move forward on their goals for a better future. Tutor training is via distance learning, and all tutoring sessions are online. We have programs teaching English to immigrants; adult literacy for folks working on a GED; and youth literacy for kids struggling to learn to read.
828-254-3442 [email protected] https://lit-together.org/

GET CONNECTED
Virtual Teams Session
Team members will showcase Red Cross’ mission, diverse volunteer opportunities
and be available to answer questions.
Instructions on how to access the session will be provided with RSVP.
RSVP required by Wednesday, 9/8/21.
RSVP by visiting: tinyurl.com/VolunteerInfoSession21
Questions? [email protected]

Join Asheville GreenWorks, Broad River Volunteer Fire Dept, Buncombe County Solid Waste and Keep Fairview Cleanup for a difficult but exciting cleanup of the Flat Creek Ravine. Illegal dumpers have used this ravine to dump household waste. The trash is in a steep location and will require volunteers with familiarity of climbing and rappelling. Professional guides will be on site to oversee the cleanup. If you own climbing gear, please consider bringing it out for the day.

AGW will provide refreshments, t-shirts, food, music, encouragement and safety equipment.

Looking to get involved, stay active, and meet some new friends? Sand Hill Community Garden workdays take place on Wednesdays (6-8 p.m.) and Saturdays (10 a.m.-noon) from Feb. 27-Oct. 30, 2021, at Buncombe County Sports Park. The garden is located on 16 Apac Dr. in West Asheville/Enka-Candler.

Join friends and neighbors as they come together on common ground to raise fresh, organic vegetables and fruits for the Enka community.

Expect to wear a mask and maintain social distance throughout. Tools and hand sanitizer are available, but any gloves, loppers, pruners, or gardening tools you can bring will decrease the amount of contact between volunteers. Please wear work clothes to get dirty and closed-toe shoes. Sunscreen, water, and a hat are also handy items to have on hand.

Sand Hill Community Garden has been growing fresh produce since 2011 and raised over 1,200 lbs. of organic produce last year.

NOTE: Community workdays are weather dependent. Please join the community garden email list (send your info to [email protected]) to stay up on workday tasks and other garden news.

To receive the I Heart Parks monthly newsletter, sign up online. Follow Buncombe County Recreation on Facebook and Instagram for the latest updates.

Come enjoy the beautiful Fall weather by joining our weekly nursery workdays. We will meet in the Sand Hill native tree nursery from 10am-12pm. We will do a variety of activities from potting trees and weeding nursery plants. Please dress to get dirty and have a good time! Bring water, sun protection, and any other personal items.

* Minors under 14 years old must be accompanied by an adult on all workdays. Minors 14-17 can volunteer unaccompanied but must have a parent or guardian submit a minor waiver (contact [email protected]). *

Please register for the workday(s) you will be attending.

Review our Communicable Disease Guidelines for Volunteers