Gateway Sustainable Farmers Alliance
Community Outreach
Our Story & Mission
Gateway Sustainable Farmers Alliance (GSFA) is a farmer-led, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supporting and promoting farmers through the Known & Grown program in the greater St. Louis region.
Our mission is to strengthen community food systems by providing sustainable farmers, both current and future, with education, technical assistance, and resource support through collaborative partnerships that bridge connections between producers, buyers, and consumers in rural, suburban, and urban communities within 150 miles of Saint Louis.
Our Work Environment GSFA is structured as a worker self-directed organization. Traditional hierarchical dynamics are not present and staff are considered co-directors and have greater autonomy. This environment requires enhanced interpersonal communication, peer accountability, and collaborative decision-making.
Our Values GSFA operates in accordance with a set a shared values:
Trust and Integrity – Actions should always be taken in good faith with honesty and responsibility.
Respect – People should be treated with kindness at all times. This means regularly practicing active listening and self-reflection, being aware of power dynamics, as well as honoring individual differences.
Diversity – There is power in different experiences and perspectives.
Relationships – Building community and trust with individuals and organizations is essential to developing understanding and perspective in our work to effect systems change.
Collaboration – Actions shouldn’t take place in isolation. Whether working with fellow staff or community partners, it is important to lean on the skills and capacities of others to strengthen our work.
Community Empowerment – We follow the principle that we all do better when we all do better. Lifting up other organizations and groups of people in our community promotes collaboration and resilience.
Equity – All people should have the tools and resources they need to succeed.
Transparency – Honest work should be visible for all to see.
Learning – There is always room to learn more.
Position Overview The Community Outreach Specialist has an integral role in raising awareness about GSFA and Known & Grown. This role primarily builds and maintains community relationships, coordinates events and meetings, and engages the public on our programming.
*This is a grant funded, temporary position for at least 10 months with the potential to become permanent pending additional funding.
Responsibilities
Lead:
○ Schedule and facilitate events: fundraising events, annual farmer-buyer gathering, monthly farmer workshops and farm volunteer days
■ One-on-one outreach to farmers, buyers, and community organization partners to encourage engagement and participation in events
■ Manage detailed planning for events: timelines, deadlines, action items, RSVPs, pre and post surveys, etc.
■ Document events through photographs and videos for storytelling and information dissemination
○ Facilitate and manage local food buyer group
■ Host quarterly buyer meetings
■ Identify local food buyers to bring into the Known & Grown community, and maintain relationships with current local food buyers including grocers, restaurants, and other wholesalers
■ Guide group engagement to identify challenges, solutions, and opportunities for support
○ Representation of the organization with public outreach: tabling, presentations, community organization partnership and relationship-building
○ Facilitate Fundraising Committee meetings as event lead
○ Manage farmer and buyer survey creation, dissemination, and responses
Support:
○ Create copy and design content for social media, newsletters and handouts
○ Develop branding products for farmers and buyers ○ Connect farmers and buyers for sales opportunities
○ Outreach and recruitment of new farmers into the program
Team:
○ Play an integral role on a small team at a start-up, worker self-directed non-profit that uses group decision making in setting organizational policies
○ Participates in staff meetings and events, and contributes to board reports, grant reports, and grant applications
Required Qualifications
- Experience, skill, and enjoyment with planning and hosting events
- Drive for self directing one’s own schedule and work and taking initiative
- Strong communication skills and collaborative approach to decision-making
- High level of organizational skills
- Access to reliable transportation
- Occasional weekend availability
- Ability to form authentic relationships, listen to the needs of our community and deliver on them, with an intrinsic value of putting relationships first
- Must live near St. Louis, MO, preference given to candidates based in the metro area
Preferred Qualifications
- Professional experience in community outreach, agriculture and/or food systems
- Understanding of the experiences of marginalized communities
- Experience with fundraising and soliciting sponsorships and donations
- Experience building out a diversified volunteer base for organizational events
- Eye for visual aesthetic and wording composition
- Social media engagement and marketing knowledge
- Microsoft Office, Google Drive, Zoom, Canva, MailChimp knowledge
Benefits and Compensation
- Worker self-directed structure
- $55,000 per year
- 32 hour work week
- 128 hours (4 weeks) of paid time off per calendar year
- 19 paid holidays
- Flexible work hours
- Work from home option
- Healthcare and home office stipends
- Professional development opportunities
- Simple IRA contribution
GSFA is committed to the right of equal employment opportunity for every applicant for employment and every Staff member without regard to race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental ability (except where such physical or mental limitations affect the applicant’s ability to perform the job for which they have applied even with reasonable accommodations), medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, or military and veteran status or any other status protected by law. This policy extends to recruiting, hiring, working conditions, benefits, training programs, promotions, discipline, use of facilities, and all other terms and conditions in the workplace.
GSFA is committed to the recruitment of candidates traditionally underrepresented in agricultural organizations and the nonprofit sector in general.
To Apply
Please send a cover letter and resume (pdf format preferred) to admin@gatewayfarmers.org with the subject line Community Outreach by August 13, 2025.
To learn more about Known & Grown STL, visit our website at knownandgrownstl.org.
