Woofers for the Valley

The Wesley-Smiths have also had woofers. Maybe we should think about organising some Valley woofers. This would take the pressure off one household and provide more experience for the woofers. As well, many of us live quite a long way from the village and woofers are young people who often require the extra stimulus of a nightlife. Any ideas? Lee

Great idea Lee. Here is the WWOOF (Willing Workers on Organic Farms) Newsletter I just received. There is a web site and I downloaded the applicattion form from there and sent it off. I cannot work out how to add attachments so I will copy and paste it here - if nothing else read the poem. Maybe someone else can tell us about his/her experiences with WOOFers in the valley?

Greetings from WWOOF HQ
Newsletter # 75, Spring 2008
The WWOOF office has received heaps of feedback and inquiries about the Government initiative which enables Working Holiday Visa (WHV) holders to extend their visas by 12 months. The initiative was implemented to encourage WHV holders to work in rural areas where Primary Producers were having difficulty finding labour. The Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) decided that WHV holders could accumulate the time needed (3 months) by WWOOFing on WWOOF Host properties that meet the Department’s criteria. It should be noted that it is meeting the Department’s criteria that qualifies a Host to sign Form 1263, not being a WWOOF Host. It should also be noted that the WHV holder must carry out the work required and this must be the type of work specified by the Department. The only way that a WHV holder can extend their visas is by working on properties that meet the Departments criteria; the fact is that some WHV holders have decided to qualify by WWOOFing instead of working fulltime for money.
At present, hosts who are Primary Producers operating in specific post code areas are eligible to sign the Form 1263 for those Wwoofers holding a Working Holiday Visa. The Department has also decided that a “working day” is the number of hours that would normally be worked on that particular property. This means that on a WWOOF Host property where 4-6 hours is a normal working day, the WHV holder qualifies for one day for every day (4-6hrs) worked. The only way a Host can sign the Form is if they meet the Department’s criteria and the WWOOFer has actually carried out the specified work required! We are aware of the number of Wwoofers who are seeking to extend their visas and of the fact that some of these people ask hosts to make false statements as to the amount of time worked at a property. Hosts should always be truthful about the information they supply on Form 1263, as penalties are issued for false declarations. Please contact the WWOOF office if you have any questions or concerns or want to be included on the Primary Producer List of Hosts. If you want a closer look at the rules and regulations regarding visa extensions, please visit the Department of Immigration and Citizen’s website: www.immi.gov.au

News, Notices and Interesting Bits
Using the Bulletin Board (BB):
Private contact details should NOT be added to your posting because people who are not WWOOF members have access to your details. Non-WWOOF members can negotiate their way around the Bulletin Board, with the exception of the Host to Host forum they CAN peruse the BB far enough to record your details and contact you or even visit your property uninvited. For this reason, we ask Hosts to avoid putting their contacts details, including websites on the BB. All registered WWOOFers would have access to your contact details through their WWOOF Books . We edit all postings to make sure no contact details are listed on the BB.

Deleted Hosts Still Accepting Wwoofers
We have had situations where hosts drop out for whatever reason and then a WWOOFer calls. What a temptation to accept their help! But if a WWOOFer injures themselves on an un-registered ex-WWOOF host property, the insurance will NOT be operable and leaves the ex-host wide open for trouble.
Single Male Hosts
Single female WWOOFers generally prefer to visit host properties where there are other females present. We’ve had feedback from these members where they have expressed concerns about Host entries that give the impression that the Hosts are a couple, when in fact the Host is a single male. This can be totally innocent, simply using the term “we” in a host entry can give the impression there is a couple on the property. Sometimes Hosts have joined as a couple and the relationship has changed and there is no longer a couple on the property. If this has happened, it’s important that the Host’s entry reflects the changed circumstances. The Host should let the WWOOF office know, as soon as possible about the change so we can update the Host’s entry. On other occasions there is generally a couple on the property, however the female partner is currently not residing on the property for various reasons. It’s important that WWOOFers are made aware that the only person who will be on the
WWOOFer Resume’s to Hosts
WWOOF has created a form that can be emailed to hosts from potential WWOOFers giving information about themselves and why they want to visit your property. This enables hosts to make an informed decision to accept any particular WWOOFer. This is available on our Website.
Hosts can be WWOOFers, too!
Hosts can go WWOOFing courtesy of the Host membership during times when they can freely get away, during long weekends or holidays, etc. We offer this to Hosts as a way to visit other hosts to see what other people are achieving. Please ring the WWOOF office to arrange this.
FEEDBACK
“The only slight problem we encounter is that not all hosts have the courtesy to reply to our individual emails and/or phone calls. In fact, about 50% ignore our contact and we are left hanging on for days awaiting a reply. Can you please advise the hosts that it costs nothing to be good-mannered as we would have shown that kindness to hosts. “ WWOOFers Steve & Louise Roe

It is a two-way street in this regard. Hosts ignore heaps of inquiries and WWOOFers contact heaps of hosts and only reply back to the one host of their choice! It IS common courtesy to give a quick reply on both sides. Perhaps hosts can generate an automatic response to emails simply saying that if you do not hear back from us in 48 hours of your inquiry, we do not need you, or something to this effect. Those hosts who only check their emails once a week, please don’t list your email in your entry. Or perhaps state in your entry your preferred method of contact.

Our kids have really enjoyed meeting (most) of the WWOOFers, and we’ve had great times. Who can pick the best? It would have to be Carla-our 34 year old Italian girl who made us laugh all week-she sang, danced and just made everyone feel overwhelmingly happy. And she taught the kids to make Tiramasu & Pasta Carbonara!! Mind you there was Nirmala-who left us after 2 months to buy horses in Mongolia and trek overland but ended up in a police station in Mongolia defending her horses ownership. It’s a great life!! “Host QG132”


THANK YOU
Without the Wwoofs what would I do
My bones are getting older
Wwoofs till the ground and pick the fruit
They’re my supporting shoulder

The spuds look great, the apples red
The beans are getting taller
Without the Wwoofs what would I do
The crop would be much smaller

Without the Wwoofs what would I do
When Mother Nature’s largess
Fills bowls with fruit and vegetables
That need to be stored in glasses

So out they come, preserving jars
The pasta sauce it bubbles
The fruit is sliced, preserving starts
So quick the time it passes

They talk of home and travels too
Their culture and traditions
Their hopes and dreams and where to next
Then wash the dirty dishes

Without the Wwoofs what would I do
When Mumma Pig starts yelling
We feed her, then collect some eggs
But the chook house, it is smelling

We dig it out and pile it up
The compost is now steaming
A Scottish flag atop the pile
Of home were these Wwoofs dreaming

Our wildlife all speak Japanese
Norwegian, Dutch and German
Koreans fine and Danish, too
Its Scottish brogue that fools them

So without Wwoofs what would I do
When wombats need to play
And the Joeys are demanding
Is the bottle is on its way

We watch the wild Echidna
As it tracks the running ants
And the orphaned Magpie chortles
But for food I think it chants

The tiny baby possum
The Galahs and the Lorikeets
And some of natures treasures
That the Wwoofs are likely to meet

And when the injured Wildlife does arrive
In need of loving care
The Wwoofs are there to help them
In their healing they are sharing

Through youthful eyes I see the world
I’ve been to Spain and Chile
I’ve walked the ‘Wall’ and climbed the Alps
I’m glad I took my billy

The Japanese have humour
The Koreans are so polite
The Danes and Swedes are stunning
And the Chinese a delight

Norwegian beauty floors me
The Deutsch just work so hard
The English, Scots and Yanks
All go the asking yard

The Dutch, the Swiss and the Spanish, too
Are workers, that’s for sure
Now I’m after other countries
So please, just send me more

I wrote this for those Travellers
For the Wwoofs who come to share
For without these Wwoofs what would I do
For them I really care
VM113 Annie Williams

Sharing WWOOFers?
A recent phone call from a Host has alerted us to the following; Some Hosts are sharing “their” WWOOFers with other WWOOF Hosts when they don’t have much happening on their own property, which is fine.

The problem is that some Hosts are sharing “their” WWOOFers with neighbors and friends who are NOT registered WWOOF Hosts and that’s the problem. Why is that a problem? The WWOOFer insurance that WWOOFers receive as part of their Membership is only applicable on currently registered WWOOF Host properties. This means that in the unfortunate event that the WWOOFer has some sort of accident while on the unregistered property, they will not be able to make a claim against their WWOOFer insurance and may have no other recourse than to sue the owner of the unregistered property and possibly the WWOOF Host who sent them there without informing them that they were going to an unregistered property.

I believe WWOOF Hosts have a duty of care here. Hosts should only share “their” WWOOFers with registered WWOOF Hosts or at the very least inform the WWOOFer that they are going to a property that is not a registered WWOOF property and the implications to their WWOOFer insurance.

Good Communication is the Key
We get frequent feedback about Host/WWOOFer relationships and how to improve them. The most important issue is one of good, effective communication. Upon an initial WWOOFer inquiry, hosts should ask questions of the person inquiring. We had a response from one of our hosts regarding who to accept as WWOOFers. “We have had folks in the past who are clearly not interested in the things we do, just wanting a cheap place to stay. So now we ask them up front: What is the reason you are wanting to visit our property?”-If they sound vague as though they are running down the list and trying to say something about it– we are far less likely to accept them than if they show they have actually read our entry and sound enthusiastic. We also emphasize minimal water and electricity usage, lack of public transport, how much time they can spend on the internet or phone, whatever is important for them to know before accepting them. We also ask them to call us again the day before we are to pick them up, as ‘no-shows’ can be very annoying!” Host QR016. It is also a good idea to speak at least once on the phone rather than solely by email, to get a feel for the person in how they speak to you. Giving them a general idea of the work that awaits them, the work hours, meals, sleeping arrangements, etc and their reactions to these things, can be a good indication of whether or not to accept them. More on this subject comes from QN143: “We found that Communication is the key as some Wwoofers really like to know their jobs for the week so they can do them in the order they choose. It has been helpful to explain to them when they first arrive what food and drinks they can help themselves to and set out guidelines for meals, cleaning up, and any definite House Rules. We also found that many Wwoofers enjoy cooking, which is a great way to share cultures and allow them to feel a part of the home.”
Checking Membership Numbers & ID
We had a lot of response to ID checks generated from our last Newsletter #74. Even though we emphasize the importance of checking ID, many hosts overlook this in all our literature. One host wrote back,” One of the WWOOFers we had stole our binoculars which were of good quality. But he didn’t take the casing so we didn’t notice until he was gone. Unfortunately I did not record his ID and was glad to have your suggestion for the future”. Another host replied: “I arrived home unexpectedly to have lunch with my Wwoofers only to find they had taken off with cash and some personal possessions. I called the police who found the Wwoofers-who it turned out were NOT who they said they were and it is largely my fault for not checking ID as I had accepted their story of them losing their WWOOF Books!” If you are unsure as to the legitimacy of a WWOOFer, please ring the WWOOF office to verify membership numbers and names.

Hosts Visiting Hosts
Hosts SA001 are open to the idea of WWOOF Hosts visiting them for a few days without necessarily having to do work, but just to touch base and see what other hosts are doing. Are there other hosts willing to do the same? If so, a notice on the Host to Host forum would be appropriate. It is beneficial for hosts to contact other hosts in their area, both to visit as well as to trade Wwoofers.

WWOOF
Membership
$55 single or
$65 for two people
travelling together
**Hosts receive $10 for every member they sign up!**

Host Membership
New Host $50
Annual Renewal $45
Concession $30

**Host Application and Renewal are free on receipt of a copy of your certificate from an AQIS Certifying Body**

CONTACT US AT:
WWOOF
2166 Gelantipy Rd
W Tree, Vic, 3885.
Ph. (03) 5155 0218
Fax (03) 5155 0342



Email us
wwoof@wwoof.com.au

Or check out our website
(You might be on it!)
www.wwoof.com.au

WWOOF Australia
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Discover the REAL Australia
Ph +61-(0)3-5155-0218
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Lee S wrote:The Wesley-Smiths have also had woofers. Maybe we should think about organising some Valley woofers. This would take the pressure off one household and provide more experience for the woofers. As well, many of us live quite a long way from the village and woofers are young people who often require the extra stimulus of a nightlife. Any ideas? Lee

Just to add to the Woofer story - Jason and Paul of Old Bendeela Road have had extensive experience with Woofers - tel . 44 652 222
Gina