The Lemon Lifters (Rookies)
The Grapefruit Grabbers (two-three years)
The Order of the Orange (four or more years)Sarah Kelzenberg
At the end of every citrus picking season, the Sun Lakes Citrus Sharers have a year-end celebration of our labors, our laughs and our camaraderie. At the celebration this year we took the usual photos of our volunteers. Not all 126 volunteers were present at the party, but those that were included the Lemon Lifters (Rookies); our Grapefruit Grabbers (two-three years); and our Order of the Orange (four or more years). The largest group is the Order of the Orange, meaning that the bulk of our volunteers have returned to again enjoy the fun! We are thankful for all of our volunteers and for all those who have stepped forward in leadership roles to keep things running. Each person at the party received a 10th Year pin as a memento of that milestone. We are all looking forward to next January when we can begin again to glean the unneeded fruit of Sun Lakers and share it with people in need at St. Mary’s Food Bank. This year we donated 58 tons in all. Because of the overwhelming generosity of homeowners who gave monetary support to our efforts, we had more than enough and we made a donation to St. Mary’s Food Bank to support their gleaning efforts across the Phoenix area. Thank you!