Menu     About Giving Groves:         Gleaning:           Volunteer Information:           Links:           Feedback & Forms:	Our History   Faced with another year of watching oranges in her parents Rancho Santa Fe grove go to waste, a member of St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church had an idea: pick the fruit and give it to the needy.   Some quick research led her to the San Diego Food Bank’s web site where she found a source for distributing food to charities countywide. So began the joint effort of The Giving Groves project and The San Diego Food Bank.  The Giving Groves began in 2003 with just one grove and 15 volunteers. To date, eighteen groves, with over 100,000 pounds of fruit, have been picked by The Giving Groves and distributed by The San Diego Food Bank. Produce that has been picked include oranges, tangerines, grapefruit, lemons, limes, kumquats and other fruit. It’s a program where everyone wins. The volunteers spend a day outside, they feel good about what they are doing, the grove owners get their groves picked and the hungry are fed.