Growing Together from the Ground Up
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GROWING TOGETHER FROM THE GROUND UP ANNUAL REPORT 2018 b kilgust - flickr A YEAR AT THE FARMSTEAD MISSION: We plant seeds and grow RESPECT LETTER FROM JEAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR together to create a healthy We respect ourselves, others, and our ecosystem. Missoula. n the past year, I have watched gardeners come to Respect cultivates trust and River Road, some dressed in pressed slacks on their a safe space for program SUSTAINABILITY way to work, some in sweatshirts and jeans, some participants and our staff. I We are committed to investing in with canes, some with kids. At the end of the season, COMPASSION this organization and its people by a Syrian couple took over a plot, giddy with possibility, Our work is grounded promoting a positive work-life balance, and I snapped a picture of them and the baby-sized in compassion. We are providing suitable wages and benefits, empathetic and kind. zucchini they discovered abandoned in their new garden. and long-term employment opportunities for all staff The River Road Farmstead has been an eye opener for members. me. In 2018 we moved into our permanent home and I’ve loved every minute of discovery since. In the Community VISION: VALUES: Barn meetings, trainings, and celebrations took place by A connected Missoula These six words are Garden City partners like the Neighborhood Council, Missoula County where everyone values and Harvest’s guiding principles. We live Public Schools, and First Security Bank. The caretaker these values and continually weave has made a home in the apartment. Our staff gathered has access to healthy, them into our culture each day. for farm lunch each Wednesday of the growing season. local food. Thousands of pounds of food cured in the second floor COLLABORATION STEWARDSHIP loft. Teens learned the basics of cooking, made a feast, We work cooperatively rather than We are caretakers of the land. In and served it at a community dinner as the snow fell. competitively at all levels, building everything that we do, we consider the relationships and partnerships that are impact on our environment. We respect I am incredibly grateful to all who give life to our work and mutually beneficial. We communicate and honor the ground that grows our food, to this place. It is clear to me that we’re planting seeds frequently and openly with TRUST the water that keeps it alive, the air that and growing together, creating a healthy Missoula. community members, neighbors, From our open farms and we breathe while farming, gardening, partners, and with each gardens to our open hearts and and living. other. minds, we trust in our community members. Community and togetherness are only possible when lined with trust. GROWING TOGETHER FROM THE GROUND UP FARM TO SCHOOL COMMUNITY GARDENS We grew Gardeners saved up to FAN MAIL 3,000 CONVINCED I WOULD FAIL $100/month on groceries pounds of veggies LETTER TO LORI, SCHOOL for kids to taste in COLIN CORBETT GARDEN MANAGER, ON class and on the farm n 2012 I was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis HER FARMER IN THE (we grow a carrot CLASSROOM LESSONS. (arthritis of the spine) and Crohn’s disease. I had 363 garden plots rented for every kid who to quit my job at the time, leave college, apply for ur farmer educators teach visits the PEAS Farm I disability, and was bedridden on and off for most of the Farmer in the Classroom on an educational by gardeners at year. 813 Oin every second grade farm visit) classroom in Missoula’s District As my physical health eventually started to stabilize, my 10 gardens in Missoula (+1 under construction in 2018) One schools. With lessons ranging mental health lagged behind—when you lose months or from seed identification to grinding Our school years of your life at a time, it’s hard to trust that you are wheat into flour, even in the 7 gardens reach somewhat able-bodied again. off-season children are learning 10% of gardeners (and always tasting!) about the My partner, Kim, noticing I was really struggling, are veterans source of the food on their plates. 2,950 decided to sign me up for a community garden plot. students At first, I was terrified. My body had been acting so unpredictably for so long. Regardless of what it was, I Farmer in the 99% shared food with Classroom teaches was convinced I would fail. friends/neighbors/food bank Plum was so excited you came to It turned out that when it came to community Mrs. Manning's second grade at 700 gardening, I didn’t fail. Sure, I had bad days, but when and shared second graders 100% Paxson today. She told me all about gardening knowledge with others each school year I did, there were people and resources to help me bees, the queen, the workers, that succeed. It played a major role in bringing positivity and there are like 120 bees in a hive she We grow veggies in confidence back in to my life, helping me to recover. talked the entire walk home about Over of gardeners I am disabled, have many medical expenses, and live 90% it. We are going to the library this raised garden valued the social interaction and 16 on a fixed income. We relied on food stamps to make having control over their food weekend to get some books on bees beds at the Central ends meet over the years. But, because of the garden, and do more research. The honey Kitchen, where all K-8 lunches for Missoula instead of cutting back on vegetables, we’ve expanded was a big hit too + . She loves every County Public our horizons. We cook with a larger quantity and variety Over of gardeners time you visit. Schools are made. 90% of vegetables. We’ve been introduced to a whole array gained mental/emotional . Elizabeth Stuckey, parent at Paxson Elementary of vegetables: kohlrabi, dinosaur kale, and purple beans. wellbeing, ate more fresh Instead of failing, we’ve thrived. veggies, and got more exercise because of their garden plots. We grew YOUTH DEVELOPMENT NEIGHBORHOOD FARMS 170,294 pounds of produce DESIGNING FOR HOPE teens COME AS YOU ARE 55 Of that, hen I first started working here, MICHELLE PARISI I didn’t know how to express worked on of hen I moved to Missoula almost ten years ago, 2 myself. I would get angry I would our farms, learning I was admittedly a bit lost. I had a job but didn’t 46,128 “W pounds was grown scream and break things. I don’t have a closet life and job skills Wreally know anyone in town, and it was actually for those in need, door anymore because I ripped it off the a pretty lonely time. I heard about the Volunteer for Veggies hinges and kicked it into billions of pieces.” program and called Greg who runs the River Road Farm. Youth operated Including seniors, He told me to, “just show up.” And, luckily for me, I did. When Sylvianne came to Garden City Harvest, she volunteers, prescription produce recipients, was in what she calls her “whatever” phase. In 7 mobile farm It was a lifesaver. other words, she didn’t have much faith in herself. stands, with “The first day I was like, ‘this is going to suck’ and Having somewhere to be, good work to be a part and our 17partner then two hours in I was like, ‘this is awesome.’” 972 of, and people to be with rescued me from a agencies. customer visits by difficult time. The people I met that first year, I still Sylvianne took a leadership role in the Youth seniors and low count among my closest friends. And, ten years Harvest program in the past year as the group income families later, that same farm is my actual home. took on an ambitious project. Homeword, 219 on land owned by Trust Montana, is building They grew I have seen this farm have a similar effect on many volunteers help us small homes adjacent to the Missoula Food volunteers throughout the years. Of course it is a farm and grow this food Bank. Garden City Harvest teamed up with 21,000 farms are about food. But, so many volunteers come back Homeword to create a community friendly, edible pounds of food week after week and never take so much as a carrot. greenspace designed by Youth Harvest teens. So, what are they finding at the farm? for The teens met with Homeword, Missoula Food 10 partner agencies A place to be any day of the week, where you come Bank, and Garden City Harvest staff. “They serving children as you are, where you are guaranteed at least a few were coming up with questions that were and families friendly faces and something meaningful to do. above and beyond what I had thought of,” said Youth Harvest Director, Tami McDaniel. Maybe you’re having a bad day and don’t want to talk to anyone . Maybe social interaction makes you anxious You can see the plans come to life this spring . Maybe you feel lost, lonely, or don’t even know where along with the Montana Street Homes – just to begin . We have a place for you! For me, it turned north of the Missoula Food Bank parking lot! a difficult year into a new direction in life. Next season, while I won’t be caretaker at River Road, I will be working at one of our other farms, Orchard Gardens, continuing to work in the soil and enjoying friends new and old.