Harvesting corn is not easy work, but it's work that Joyce Ravnikar-Kulyk of Fairview doesn’t mind doing.

She’s volunteered for the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania for years, but this was her first time harvesting corn.

There were some things she had to learn. 

“You pick the ones that [are] a good size, dark tassel, 45-degree angle, and they pop off pretty [easily],” she said.

She was one of several volunteers gleaning corn at Evergreen Nurseries in Fairview on Wednesday.

That means they were taking the leftover crop.

The food bank’s director of food sourcing said the nursery has been a great partner. 

“They contacted us, said that they have some surplus corn that they would love to donate to us,” Faith Kindig said.

She thinks they will be able to glean about 2,400 pounds of corn. Then, it will be taken back to the volunteers at the food bank. 

“They’re going to go through it, they’re going to help pack it into individual packs, and then we will distribute it,” she said.  

She said recent cuts make this partnership even more important. 

“We get the produce directly to our neighbors, and it’s a direct impact,” she said. 

Ravnikar-Kulyk said it doesn’t take much.

“It’s pretty simple instructions,” she said. “You don’t need any special skills. Just your time and [willingness] to give some time. And it makes a difference.”