Not only do the gleaners pick the fruits and vegetables, but also they take responsibility for transporting them to the recipients' doorsteps. In 1999, the Shewfelts were named J.C. Penney Co.'s regional volunteers of the year. Last year, more than 19,000 volunteers nationwide collected about 10 million pounds of produce from the fields. And on May 10, Polly, the daughter of a Seffner dairy farmer, will be named the Woman of Distinction by the Soroptimist Club of Tampa at the group's annual dinner. The club is a professional women's organization that undertakes service projects.
Gene says proudly.
For 40 years, he was an accountant, crunching numbers for corporations. Now at 75, he's hoisting boxes of tomatoes and arranging flats of strawberries in pickup truck beds, readying them for delivery. But then he wouldn't get to see the surprised faces of retirement home residents when he arrives like a post-Christmas Santa Claus. Those moments are priceless, he says. In all, they picked and packed 4,800 pounds of oranges from a private landowner's grove.