What a day,what a day!!!

Food distribution has really picked up with the warm weather and the increase in produce.  Yesterday we had 79 families.  When we got there at 10AM there were already over 55 people waiting for tickets. We had two truck loads of food that was cleaned out by the time the last people were coming through. I had thought with the new influx of produce that we might not being going down to Hillsville Farmer's Market this year. Not so. We'll need that produce as well. Vicky is predicting we'll hit a100 families soon. Valerie says 120.  Each time we see five or six new families. Thanks to our two RU guys Ian and Ronnie we had enough hands.

Thirty families have signed up for the container gardening project. We'll be ordering the containers by the end of the week and Kayla and I have been working out how much of what seedlings to buy. We had pretty much decided not to do leaf plants but an article in the Roanoke Times this AM points out that leaf lettuce does very well in containers, grows quickly from seed, and can be replanted during the growing season. We may have to rethink that one.

Watch for an article on Food Distribution. Amy Matzke-Fawcett from the Roanoke-Times Current was there.  A very nice person. Talked with me and Vicky and shoppers who were willing to talk.  May is our one year anniversary for start up and the Current plans to run an article on what we've done. Watch for it and I'll put a link to it in the blog.

In the meantime Eric Bucey (director of programs in Pulaski and one of the original founders with me) and I have been working on an application for 6 Summer Associates from AmeriCorps VISTA.  This was due Wednesday and we got word Friday we were awarded them. These people will be with us for two months.  Radford will get three and Pulaski three.  The Radford SAs will be working with the container gardens, helping with food distribution, and Belle Heth/McHarg Summer Program.  The three in Pulaski will help with TIES ( more on that ) and MeadowView.

Food Distribution gets a mash note

Vicky Collins, Director of Radford City DSS and a major part of Food Distribution, and I were invited to present a short power point on the Food Distribution at an event this last Thursday.  Bobby Nicholson, who is a City Council member,wanted us to attend the event entitled Food Security and Sustainability in Our Rural Community: Addressing Hunger in the NRV. At some point we also became presenters. This "food summit" was sponsored by The Center of Student Engagement and Community Partnership of Virginia Tech, The Community Foundation of the New River Valley, and The Virginia Tech Institute for Policy and Governance.  There were five local presentations and we were last with a focus on Collaborative Networks.There were also international presenters there as part of a larger conference at Tech.

I got together a power point of 28 slide which combined brief text with photos. It focused on the following areas: the collaborative effort, the sources of the food and how acquired, the actual distribution, lessons learned and challenges, the next steps and the big dream.  It was very well received and we got many compliments.  What was truly amazing was the note thrust into my hand by a young man who didn't even speak and hurried off.

I only got a chance to say thank you and he was gone. Vicky took one look and said "we got a love note." This deeply touched me.  To have this total stranger who was with the international group express such appreciation means more to me than the awards I've received.  What a gift. This not just for Vicky and I but the whole team.

BTW, today we had 70 shoppers and two truck loads of food.  Dave Moore, one of the drivers, said that soon we would be getting dairy products as well. WOW!!!!

This afternoon I had to shop at WalMart and stopped personally to tell Pete, one of the zone managers, what a difference the produce had made and that today we fed 70 households.This really made an impact on him.

Executive Director Receives Award

Thursday evening at a banquet at the German Cub on VT campus in Blacksburg I received the NRV Leading Lights Award. For the full story go to Roanoke Times Current at:
www.roanoke.com/news/nrv/community/wb/242988   I'm very honored to receive this award.
The banquet was excellent.  The German Club is impressive as a building and all the speakers were marvelous.  Paul Torgersen, the former President of Tech, told an hysterically funny story of how he was mistakenly credited for keeping Coach Beamer from leaving. Clearly, once the media get a hold of a concept it becomes truth whether it is or not. He has given up trying to change "history" and now graciously accept thanks. Mr.Pearson loved the crab cakes.

Grand Valley State University here this past week

Last week we hosted Grand Valley State University from Michigan for their alternative spring break. All the students were education majors so they really wanted to work with the ASP.  They did but not as much as they have liked since public schools were closed Monday and Tuesday for Easter break.  Monday and Friday AM five of the ten helped with Food Distribution (see them unloading above) which was really great since both days we had a lot of food and a lot of folks. They also worked on the computer refurbishing project (we give these to low income families) and the listing of the items from the storage unit (yes, its empty and we are out from under that rent).for Craig's list. They labeled and measured all the items and took a picture.  Tuesday afternoon they worked at Mountain View Cometary with Sarah Carter pulling weeds and removing stumps.   I did two workshops with them, one on community development and one on issues of poverty.  Thursday AM they had an economic tour of Radford and Pulaski.  Each night we took turns cooking for them, Sunday I did beans and rice :); Monday Kathy did chicken, potatoes, green beans, and corn bread; Laura and Kayla made pizza Tuesday;and Valerie made spaghetti Wednesday. Thursday we got them subs which unfortunately we paid for twice (I found out today--got to get that straightened out).
These were a great group of kids and we really thank them for all their work for us.

Food Independence Project

Assorted Grow Bags from Gardener Supply

A big part of Beans and Rice's philosophy is to "meet immediate needs while working for long term soultions."  From Food Distribution we have learned when given a choice our shoppers definitely want produce.  In the fall we surveyed the shoppers and 80% plus said they would be willing to try vegetable gardening if they had some assistence.  Laura Tuller our AmeriCorps VISTA for Willow Woods has written a grant to the Community Foundation of the New River Valley to obatin grow bags for a container gardening project. From her proposal: "Grow bags will be used because they are light, portable, durable, and easy to store. We will obtain soil, fertilizer and seedlings from local vendors. The supplies will be distributed to participants with instructions and the option of a mentoring partnership with an experienced gardener. Each participant will receive four containers and a variety of vegetable seedlings according to preferences listed on interest surveys."   

Why have we chosen these bags?  From the Gardener Supply Catalog(http://www.gardeners.com/ )  "For years now, gardeners in England have made the most of very limited garden space by growing in plastic bags placed on steps, patios, and landings. After achieving terrific results ourselves, we've made two immpovements. First, our Grow Bags are made of patented, double layer polypropylene fabric instead of sheet plastic. This felt-like fabric "breathes" better, so plants won't suffer from heat build-up, over watering or poor aeration."  From another site in the catalog: "In our oxygen-permeable Grow Bags, the main root is "air pruned" when it reaches  the sides (rather than becoming pot bound). That causes it to absorb masses of nutrient-absorbing lateral roots, making the whole plant healthier and more resistant to disease and drought."  In Googling grow bags we found they have been pioneered in areas where people have no access to land and/or the soil is poor.  Our folks  are apartment dwellers, some lack transportation, and many have physical mobility issues.  These light portable bags seem ideal.  Further, some users have reported putting the grow bags on rolling plant stands which would allow for movement to follow the sun. 

As you can see from this multi pocket container the gardening can be quite space tight.  Also, for someone with limited mobility, they could sit on a stool and handle several plants at once.  There are also bags that are specific to types off growing.                                                  

My own experience with container gardening has been spectacular.  In Summer 2009 from just four bell pepper plants on my balcony, I obtained enough peppers to freeze 5 gallon bags of chopped peppers.  The value of the number of peppers far exceeded the costs of setting the containers up.  We also had plenty of tomatoes (in a bad tomato year).  My basil harvest was also great.

Starting with 80 bags (4 X 20 families),  the cost of the bags alone will run over $1,000.00.  In addition we will need soil, fertilizer, and seedlings.  From Laura's proposal:  "The Food Independence Project is a new initiative for Beans and Rice, Inc. It is being started to address pressing issues of hunger in the city of Radford, while simultaneously working to help families help themselves instead of relying solely on hand-outs or basic social services. It is seen as a step towards the possibility of developing a Beans and Rice, Inc. Community Garden for low to moderate income families in the future. The two major goals for the project are to get twenty families involved in the first year and to generate interest for future gardening seasons.

The project will face several challenges. Because the target population has, for the most part, no gardening experience, an established mentoring program will be critical to ensuring its success. Beans and Rice Inc. plans to use its own staff and the help of the Master Gardeners of the New River Valley.  Follow-through by participants is also of concern. By starting with a fairly simple and low maintenance project, we hope to foster success and feelings of accomplishment for our participants so that they are more likely to take the project on independently.

Good Friday Food Distribution

Over the last two weeks food from WalMart for Food Distribution has jumped phenomenally and this is mostly due to the addition of produce.  Good Friday we had two truck loads of food with 17 cases of bananas. The big challenge is to get it all unloaded, sorted, bagged (loose produce like green beans),organized, and distributed.

With good weather our numbers have also jumped back up.  This past week we have been at or near 60 households each day. We are seeing new faces each week. Once we see a new face we tend to continue to see them if not every time, quite often.

 I think there are several things that make this unique. First, there are no questions asked and we do try to ake as human as we can. I hand out the numbered tickets for line up and the most I ask is if people are in the same household.We have only one shopper per household to keep things as fair as possible. That's it. We have learned the first name of many of the shoppers and call them by name, ask after them if they are not there, and say we missed you when they show up again. I have one or two that share more with me, even to the point of calling my office.  The second thing is that a household can shop every time. Thirdly, we do it twice a week. Fourthly, people can actually "shop" for their food. We don't control what you get, just how much you can take. Fifth, we get the food and distribute it all within a one hour time frame.  Although people do wait a longer time than one hour--many come as early as 8:30 to be at the front of the line when we hand out tickets at 10 AM, they don't have to come any earlier than 10 AM.  Many people get their ticket and then leave to line up at about 10:45.  We try to keep the line moving as quickly as we can once we start at 11 and usually we are wrapping up in 20-30 minutes.

Although the addition of produce has created a challenge, its a challenge we all embrace. The quality of the food we provide is just as important as the quantity. Fresh produce is so very vital to the folks who shop with us.  Many are diabetic, many have heart conditions, some are vets from Viet Nam with multiple health issues, many are elderly.  Everyone needs good nutrition but these groups are particularly needy of better nutrition.

One of the most exciting moments for me Friday was a woman who asked whether we were going to do what we surveyed them about in the fall.  We had asked people if they would grow vegetables if we helped them. Over 80% said yes but they have no land. So, we are putting together a Food Self Sufficiency project using container gardening with soil, fertilizer,and seedlings.  Stay tuned for that project. We've applied to the Community Foundation of the NRV for some funding. More on that later.  In the mean time thank you WalMart and keep that produce coming.