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Program overview:
The Farmacy Garden and the Floyd WIC Garden
The Floyd WIC Garden
The Floyd WIC Garden was created in 2011.
The WIC Garden offers garden hours on Mondays and Fridays for interested WIC participants as well as provides fresh fruits and vegetables to WIC participants during clinics.
Fresh garden produce is used as a teaching tool during WIC nutrition education classes.
The Farmacy Garden
The Farmacy Garden was established in Spring 2014 with funding from the WIC Program along with in-kind support from Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Family Nutrition Program, Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program, Virginia Tech Student Volunteers, the Medical Reserve Corps, and the broader community.
It was created with the intention of promoting health and mitigating food insecurity among residents of Montgomery County.
How it works:
The Farmacy Garden serves the community with targeted outreach to people at or below the 200% poverty level.
The garden is open Monday, Tuesday and Friday from 9am-12pm and Thursday from 9am-3pm. During this time the Garden Coordinator and community volunteers are present at the garden to greet and orient anyone that is interested in getting involved. Everyone that helps in the garden is guaranteed a share of the harvest!
Targeted Outreach: The WIC Program
As a branch program of WIC, WIC families are a priority population, and are welcome to explore the garden and bring their children for fun and healthy outdoor activity during designated garden hours.
WIC families can work in the garden in exchange for fresh fruits and vegetables to supplement their WIC benefits.
Targeted Outreach: The Community Health Center of the New River
ValleyThe Community Health Center of the NRV is conveniently located right next to the garden. Physicians at the CHC write interested patients a prescription to participate in the garden as part of their wellness program.
As a part of their prescription, CHC patients can work in the garden in exchange for fresh fruits and vegetables, receive nutrition education classes through EFNEP, or subscribe to a weekly nutrition newsletter through EFNEP.
Program Innovation: Vouchers Increase Produce Access
• Pilot program funded through the Community Foundation of the NRV
• Funded the creation of 200 $10 vouchers redeemable at the Christiansburg Farmers Market
• Vouchers have been distributed by WIC, Social Services, the Community Health Center of the NRV and the Farmacy Garden.
Program Innovation: MarketKids!
Kids summer gardening program at the Farmacy Garden (adopted from the Blacksburg Farmers Market).
Taught 12 participating kids about gardening and nutrition with the help of two MPH students.
Kids convened at the Farmacy Garden for workshops and had two sales days (one at the Blacksburg Farmers Market and one at Christiansburg Farmers Market) where they set up as vendors and sold the produce they grew in the garden and at home.
Program Innovation: WIC Nutrition Education in the garden
This summer we led 6 WIC Nutrition Education classes in the Farmacy Garden to create a more interactive learning environment for WIC participants.
This fall we will have the help of Virginia Tech dietetic students to continue leading these classes in the garden.
Program Innovation: Partnership Evaluation
Dietetics Masters student evaluating the Farmacy Garden partnership with intent to create a “Farmacy Garden Toolkit” that would facilitate program replication in other regions.
Program Innovation: Partnership with NRV Glean Team
The NRV Glean Team delivers produce weekly to the Farmacy Garden. This produce is distributed amongst gardeners as well as at the Community Health Center and the Health and Human Services Building.
Community Partners Family Nutrition Program
Virginia Cooperative Extension
Community Health Center of the NRV
Department of Social Services
The Christiansburg Farmers Market
NRV Master Gardeners
Virginia Tech Master of Public Health Program
Virginia Tech service learning students
The Giles Community Garden
The Hale-YMCA Community Garden
NRV Glean Team
Program Challenges
Consistent participation in the garden from target population.
Perceived ability to participate—many potential participants feel they are unable to garden due to physical limitations.
Transportation
Irrigation
Projects on the Horizon
Virginia Tech Civic Agriculture students researching and designing edible landscape on adjacent land to the Farmacy Garden.
Construction of handicap accessible beds and standing beds at Farmacy Garden.
The Giles Community Garden
Building Partnerships to Build Community
Program Overview
Mission Statement: Feed Our Sheep Purpose: WE SERVE Originally a partnership between Christ
Episcopal Church and Giles Breakfast Lions Club, began in 2013
Four Food Distribution Partners: Giles Christian Mission, Social Services, Giles Senior Center, VA Dept. Health – WIC Program, plus the local neighborhood – 500+ residents within 500 feet of garden
Innovations
The GCG News Post Head Start – Seed to Fork Program Summer Camp 2016 Program Boy Scout of America – Eagle Troop in Pearisburg
Challenges/Barriers
Volunteers and community participation Midnight Gardeners – Who is actually harvesting? Data collection Funding
New Collaborations
FOCUS – A group of concerned business, local government agencies, social and community services organizations, school board superintendent, police, EMS, and others who are trying to bring fractured communities back from the brink.
The GCG role is to bring a community garden to these neighborhoods and to start building community through the power of dirt and partnerships.
Saint Mother Teresa’s CreedPeople are often unreasonable,
Illogical, and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway. If you are kind,
people may Accuse you of selfish,
ulterior motives: Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you’ll win some
False fiends and some true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank,
People may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building,
Someone could destroy overnight:
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness,
They may be jealous:
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will
Often forget tomorrow:
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have,
And it may never be enough:
Give the world the best you’ve got
Anyway.
You see, in the final analysis,
It is between you and God;
It was never between you and them
Anyway.
The NRV Glean Team
Overview: Who are We?• Started by St. Mary’s Glean Team 2013,
still the primary membership (4-6 of us)
• Volunteers from several churches and organizations (25 people, 3 groups on list), some with their own glean team
• Partners with Neighborhood Harvest, Virginia Tech, Soc. St. Andrew, many manyothers (~40 total)
What Do We Do?• Big Event: Potato Drop 2015, 2016, …
• Local (NRV) Events:
Harvest produce from local farms
Deliver fresh food to food banks, caring closets, soup kitchens, neighborhoods, senior citizen centers, schoolkids, school programs
Grow produce on our own
Who do We Donate To?Provider City
Plenty Food Pantry/Produce Delivery Floyd
Floyd Co EAP; Community Action Floyd
New River Community Action Floyd
Floyd County H.D. Floyd
Giles County H.D. Pearisburg
New River Community Action Pearisburg
Shawsville Lay Ministerial Association Shawsville
Spiritual Roots Ministry Christiansburg
Salvation Army of NRV Christiansburg
Blacksburg Interfaith Food Pantry Blacksburg
Valley Interfaith Child Care Center Blacksburg
Fieldstone UMC Christiansburg
Montgomery Co EAP; Community Action Christiansburg
What is a Potato Drop?A? B?
2015 Potato Drop is in the bag
http://www.roanoke.com/nrv/community/potato-drop-is-in-the-bag/article_e96e7b9c-33bb-5bd6-95cb-33eb45c17035.html
Potato Drop Facts• Two events – 85,000 lbs potatoes given
away
• Donated potatoes shipped at ½ our expense ½ Soc. St. Andrew
• Held during food drought (Jan-March)
• Held at Virginia Tech (large parking lot, easy access to 18-wheeler)
• Food providers drive in from 25-40 organizations and we load their vehicles with free 50-lb bags, plus plastic mesh bags
Local Events: local farms, local food, local benefits• Growing our own – we harvest every three
days, July – Sept.
• Harvest – regular events weekly all summer and fall by Mary and Will Eyestone
• 2nd Harvest 1-2 times per week Sept-Oct
• Special harvest events – as arranged
• Food recovery – salvaging
• Immediate delivery
• Storage and delayed delivery
QuantitiesYear Amount (lbs) # farms2013 4,000 22014 8,000 22015 15,000 22016 8,000 so far 4 + 3 gardens
Produce• Kale
• Apples
• Summer squash
• Winter squash
• Pumpkins
• Cucumbers
• Tomatoes
• Bell Peppers
• Lettuce
• Potatoes
• Turnips
• Collard Greens
• Green beans
• Blackeyed peas
• Eggplant
• Cabbage
Innovations• Google Drive site – shared documents (Google Docs)
• Good documentation of
• volunteer contacts
• local and regional food providers
• amounts gleaned and delivered
• hours to deliver
• kinds + amounts of food accepted
• Tax letters for farms that donate
• Document amounts from university property with SoSA
• Cooking demonstrations at food banks
Challenges/barriers• Availability of food is sporadic
• Delivery time and costs
• Times/days of delivery
• Location and Timing >> Uneven Distribution and possible waste
• Sharing between banks/kitchens
• Storage ability at gleaner’s homes, food banks
• Type of food eaten – processed vs. fresh, types of vegetables taken
• Few kitchens, little freezer or canning storage
• Financial – St. Marys
New/unique projects or collaborations on the horizon• Next potato drop – Jan. 14th, 2017
• Possibly glean at Red Sun Farms in Dublin, increased amount from Riverbend
• Give Big NRV? – need a partner
• Fundraising through St. Mary’s parishioners, archdiocese
• Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC)?
How to Find Us• NRV Glean Team Facebook page (will be
updated soon!)
• Web sites for potato drops https://sites.google.com/a/vt.edu/potato-drop-jan-2016/
• John <[email protected]>
• Dick <[email protected]>
Questions?
