Community Events in the Black Agricultural Ecosystem
Join us in our ecosystem of Black farms!
BOLT regularly hosts educational workshops, volunteer days, youth programs, and spirit-centered community building. We also share opportunities to engage at other Black-led farm sites in our Black Agricultural Ecosystem (Feed’em Freedom Foundation, Black Food Sovereignty Coalition, Black Futures Farm, and Black Food Fund). Click the calendar or scroll below to learn more or register for an event!
Flowers to the Folks
🌱 Volunteer Farm Days hosted by Feed’em Freedom Foundation
Come get your hands in the soil and be part of something growing.
Join us for a day of connection, nourishment, and hands-on support at the farm. Volunteer Farm Days are a beautiful way to give back to the land and the community, learn new skills, and share in the rhythms of seasonal life.
We’ll be tending gardens, planting, weeding, harvesting, mulching, or working on simple projects—whatever the land is calling for that day. No experience necessary—just bring your willingness to show up, get a little dirty, and be part of the magic.
What to Bring:
🌾 Clothes you can get muddy
🌞 Hat, sunscreen, and water bottle
🥗 A potluck dish or snack to share (optional)
🧤 Gloves (we have extras too!)
Why It Matters:
Every helping hand makes a difference. These days are about more than labor—they’re about community, reciprocity, and grounding in the earth beneath our feet.
Let’s grow together.
When: Fridays, 10:30am-1pm
Where: CROPS garden - 1700 w historic columbia river hwy
Sign up HERE
Madrona Fellowship Info Session
May 2, 12:00-1:00pm
Join us for an Informational Online Zoom Session.
The Madrona Fellowship for Food System Leaders is a 12-month leadership development program that supports Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) working at the intersections of food, land, culture, and climate. The program begins in September 2025. Through seasonal gatherings, mentorship, and peer connection, the fellowship nurtures transformative leadership that is rooted in land, community, and collective care. Guided by the rhythms of the bioregion, it offers space for reflection, relationship, and regeneration.
For this year’s cohort, we are expanding the Fellowship’s geographic reach—from the Upper Willamette Valley to the Lower Salish Sea—growing a bioregional network of leaders grounded in place and relationship. The program now brings together Fellows across three regional hubs: Portland, Chehalis, and Seattle. All Fellows gather seasonally for land-based immersions at our central farm site near Chehalis.
Review the fellowship’s:
Ceremonial Goat Harvest
Learn the art & skill of ethical goat harvesting and butchering, in the context of ceremony and community. You’ll witness and participate (to your degree of comfort) in the harvest of our dear Billy Goat kin, and learn the process of cleaning and butchering, and the many uses of all the animal parts. Dinner (goat stew) included. Buy your tickets here!
Madrona Fellowship Application DEADLINE
APPLICATIONS DUE MAY 16, 11:50PM
The Madrona Fellowship for Food System Leaders is a 12-month leadership development program that supports Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) working at the intersections of food, land, culture, and climate. The program begins in September 2025. Through seasonal gatherings, mentorship, and peer connection, the fellowship nurtures transformative leadership that is rooted in land, community, and collective care. Guided by the rhythms of the bioregion, it offers space for reflection, relationship, and regeneration.
For this year’s cohort, we are expanding the Fellowship’s geographic reach—from the Upper Willamette Valley to the Lower Salish Sea—growing a bioregional network of leaders grounded in place and relationship. The program now brings together Fellows across three regional hubs: Portland, Chehalis, and Seattle. All Fellows gather seasonally for land-based immersions at our central farm site near Chehalis.
Review the fellowship’s:
Black Sunday - Black Futures Farm - Earth Day
Earth Day: Black Sunday hosted by Black Futures Farm
Where: Black Futures Farm; 6745 SE 60th St. Portland, OR
When: April 27th 12:30pm-3:30pm
It’s that time again! Join us for Black Sunday and let’s celebrate Earth Day the way it’s meant to be—chill, connected, and centered in community. We’re bringing the vibes to Black Futures Farm with a day full of music, delicious food, creativity, and time spent connecting with nature.
RSVP here.
*This earth day is intended for people of African descent. if you do not identify as Black, please do not sign up for this event.
Tending the Light - Flowers to the Folks
Tending the Light: Honoring Spring
A Candle Making Workshop and Herbal Tea Ceremony
(This event is held at BOLT Headquarters farm in Corbett, OR - location address will be sent after registration.)
REGISTRATION LINK: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScH9Oxx2VPytv6064RBC0SD9ULtBrQ-DVjg-iNI0NR5nmbyHw/viewform
Join us for a special gathering at the Black Oregon Land Trust, where we'll explore the beauty and intensity of seasonal transitions. In this workshop, we'll connect with the land and each other, remembering how to breathe and find nourishment amidst change.
Mia will guide us in the art of beeswax candle dipping, a practice that honors the harvest and brings warmth to the turning seasons. As we craft our own candles, we'll reflect on what is growing within us and around us.
Jenny will lead an ancestral TeaJourney, sharing deep knowledge about accessible herbs growing all around us in the PNW. This will be a time to center ourselves and acknowledge that growth, while beautiful, can often feel overwhelming. Together, we'll learn how to orient ourselves to seasonal shifts in a way that nourishes our bodies, minds, and spirits.
Price: $40
Includes candles to take home
**5 scholarships available at $15
Earth Day Volunteer Event
Join BOLT prep the land for Spring! We will be clearing blackberries, laying trails, planting trees, and giving trees away to take home!
Sign up to Volunteer here!