Perfect Match

AJ (right) is a full-time seasonal Farm Fresh worker; he was hired to work for the June to October summer season. Every Thursday, he works at the Armory Park Farm Fresh tent to help customers and vendors exchange money using their special coin system.  

I've always been going to the farmers market, ever since I came here in 2000. It was in 2004 or 2005, I think that was the first [Farm Fresh] market, and it was awesome and the environment was great. And then we just kept going, me and my family. And then as an adult in college, one day, I was like, 'you know what? Let me volunteer over there.' And then I went in to be a volunteer. Then that position, this position, was open. And I applied and I got it. 

I wasn't volunteering at the market. Other places. Youth Pride Inc., churches, or community education places like Progreso Latino, soup kitchens. So I would go there and I would do nutrition volunteer work.

I grew up half my life in New York City and half my life in Dominican Republic. Santiago de los Caballeros, and my family has a bunch of land over there. So I grew up as a city kid and a farm boy. We came every summer to NewYork City, and then I finally came to Providence in 2000 to live. So 24 years, I'm a Rhodie!

I love working at Farm Fresh. I love it, love it, love it, love it. I wish I couldn't leave. They should have a dorm! So we can live there, haha. It's the first place that I felt like it's a perfect match. I can display my strengths, which is my empathy, treating people kindly, using my math skills, and my data skills in the office. But I get to help people, so it makes me happy. It ignited my passion to help people again. When you love the place you work and what you do, it's not work, you just feel good.