On a warm fall morning in Olivenhain, the smell of lemons fills the air. Crates of ripe fruit are stacked in the driveway of Bruce Grandquist's home. The Grandquists are blessed with more than two acres of beautiful orchards on their property in this rustic community of Encinitas, but they have no way to use the thousands of lemons their trees produce twice a year.
That's when Senior Gleaners step in. When the time is right, one to two dozen volunteers show up at the Grandquists' property and at other properties with fruit trees throughout San Diego County to pick (or "glean") the harvest. For the Grandquists, it's an enormous service they couldn't manage on their own. "It's a huge job, and I appreciate the help," Bruce Grandquist told ABC 10News.
Senior Gleaners volunteer Daryush Bastani explains how "the homeowner gets the tree picked so the rats don't get to it, the birds don't get to it." Volunteers like Bastani are all 55 and older and enjoy the camaraderie and time spent outdoors. Gleaners bring donuts and coffee and often go out to breakfast after the pick is complete. But the story doesn't end there.
The fruit is packed into vans and taken to local food banks and charities to help provide fresh produce for families who often go without. "We might take them to Father Joe's, or Youth Family Services, or Porchlight," says Bastani.
Knowing the fruit is going to people in need makes Grandquist happy as well. "It's for a good cause, and everyone is super-super nice. They are very polite and very thorough, and I like that."
Bastani sums it up well: "It's a win-win situation for everybody."
In recognition of their work helping homeowners and people dealing with food insecurity, Senior Gleaners of San Diego County is the ABC 10News Leadership Award winner for the month of December.
