Partner Agencies

Below is a sample of only a few of the 240 community partners with which Warren Wilson College students work:

BLACK MOUNTAIN COMMUNITY GARDEN

The Black Mtn. Community Garden raises vegetables for the Welcome Table Veggie Soup Kitchen in Swannanoa, MANNA Food Bank, and for Swannanoa Christian Ministries. There is also room available in the garden for community members to grow their own food on a plot that they maintain. Volunteers dig, plant, shovel, water, weed, and get dirty! On Wednesdays, volunteers help teach middle school children about growing food and work with them to maintain the school's plot.

Two volunteers get their hands dirty at the Black Mtn. Garden

MANNA FOOD BANK

MANNA Food Bank is a food and home item distribution center, located in Swannanoa. Working with Second Harvest, MANNA provides food to local non-profits such as soup kitchens and shelters, which then distribute it to needy families in Western North Carolina. Volunteers from Warren Wilson College visit MANNA once a week and help out by picking up local donations, organizing and staffing special events and food drives, visiting agencies, processing donated products, and re-packing bulk products.

PRESBYTERIAN HOMES FOR CHILDREN

Presbyterian Homes for Children is a group foster care facility located just outside of Black Mountain that specializes in creating a caring, friendly environment for children who are dependent, abused, neglected, or for another reason cannot live with their families. Volunteers spend time helping the kids with their homework in the library or playing games in the gym.

BIG BROTHERS/BIG SISTERS: KIDS ON CAMPUS

Big Brothers/Big Sisters: Kids on Campus is an opportunity to mentor an elementary-age youth from Swannanoa or the surrounding community on the Warren Wilson College Campus. Once a week, Warren Wilson students meet the school bus and spend a few hours with the kids. Activities have included visiting the pigs, doing a scavenger hunt, painting, cooking, and mountain biking. The program is a result of a partnership between Big Brothers Big Sisters of Asheville and Warren Wilson College. Opportunities are also available for traditional matches, in which the big brother or sister spends time with their little at least twice a month on or off of the Warren Wilson College campus.

ESL TUTORING

Many students take advantage of the opportunity to connect with children from another country by participating in ESL tutoring in the local schools. Most students in this program work with kids of any age who are from Mexico or Moldova, but knowing a foreign language is not necessary for being a successful tutor.

Volunteers chatting with the residents at Black Mtn. Center

BLACK MOUNTAIN CENTER

The Black Mountain Center provides active treatment services and a program of care for developmentally disabled individuals. Volunteers from Warren Wilson visit once a week and work with individuals with any number of developmental disorders, or individuals with Alzheimer's disease. Volunteers offer companionship and support, participate in special events, and lead trips with clients into the community.

THE HEALTH ADVENTURE

Volunteers at The Health Adventure work for an exhibit called Touch of the Tropics which teaches kids about various aquatic animals, especially those living in the exhibit's "touch tanks" (similar to an underwater petting zoo). Volunteers teach the children about the animals, help them to handle the creatures, and also maintain the tanks.

THE WELCOME TABLE: VEGGIE GOURMET SOUP KITCHEN

The Welcome Table serves a hot lunch every Wednesday afternoon to people from all walks of life on a "pay what you can" policy. The chefs use only fresh vegetables, received from the Black Mountain Garden and MANNA Food Bank (see above). Bulk vegetables are also available at a "no money exchange market". Volunteers assist in food preparation, serving, and clean-up.

Cleaning up at the Welcome Table Veggie Soup Kitchen

ROOM IN THE INN

Room in the Inn is a traveling women's shelter that comes for a full week to Warren Wilson College once a term. Volunteers eat a dinner with the women, and then afterward they talk, play games, and assist the women in any way they can. Each volunteer also takes a turn staying awake during the night in case of an emergency or if a problem arises.

If you are an agency looking to connect with some volunteers, contact our program coordinator, Debra Kiliru at (828) 771-3775 or email us at service@warren-wilson.edu.

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Partner Agencies