|
Dear Friend,
June - A Short Love Story
Welcome, June! The busy month of graduations, school-end celebrations, barbeques, and picnics galore, has finally arrived! June has always been my favorite month, and that’s not just because of the social events (or that it’s my birthday month…). This month that sits on the cusp of spring and summer is packed with fields of bounty and love for our taste buds, and that makes it better than all the rest of the months.
 The sweet and vibrant love that always captivates my senses the most is the strawberry. When in season, and picked that morning from the garden -- or by a local farmer -- the sweetness of the strawberry is unlike any other. Juicy and refreshing, each bite brings fireworks to the body and washes over me with time-traveling nostalgia. The strawberry’s flavor brings me back to the joys of summer in the Valley from years gone by, and also reminds me that the growing season’s varieties and flavors will bring people together again. Think: smiles, laughter, stomachs full and nourished, joy, and connection. Okay, I admit it, maybe I am really excited for the social events -- but the way food brings people together transcends cultures and lifetimes. And what makes these moments even more special, is when you know the love that’s gone into growing the food you share, and that the flavors and nutrients are at their peak because they were grown close to home.
As vaccinations continue to roll out, I hope everyone can enjoy these gatherings safely, in good health, and with a bounty of fresh local fruit and vegetables.
Wishing everyone a delicious June ahead,
Megan Saraceno
Community Engagement Coordinator
P.S. Now that masks are coming off, don’t forget to tell a friend if they have strawberries seeds in their teeth -- now that’s love!
|
|
Thank you for your generosity to Grow Food Northampton during Valley Grows Day! Every gift moves our community closer to an equitable food system in which ALL of our neighbors have access to healthy local food and have the opportunity, resources, and land to grow their own.
On Valley Grows Day, together with our match from the Local Roots Care funding circle, we raised $24,434 from 117 donors! Thank you for this amazing outpouring of love for Grow Food Northampton. We simply could not do this work without you!
|
|
TerraCorps Service Work Opening
 Applications are now open for our next TerraCorps Youth Education/ Community Engagement Coordinator (YEC/CEC) Service Member. The TerraCorps service term runs from late August 2021 to July 2022.
Our next YEC/CEC will step into a rich and established role with Grow Food Northampton, supporting our programs, mission, connections to the community, and youth education. For all of the details and to apply, check out the TerraCorps website.
|
|
Giving Garden Volunteer Hours
Join our Giving Garden crew on Monday and Thursday mornings and Wednesday afternoons! Sign up for a shift here. Each shift is an hour and a half and typical tasks are planting, weeding and harvesting.
Thank you to Renee Bachman's third grade class at Leeds Elementary School for painting garden signs for us (pictured above)!
|
|
Restrictions Lifted at Tuesday Market
 Beginning this week most of the pandemic-related restrictions at Tuesday Market have been removed by the city. Masks for the non-vaccinated and physical distancing are still requested but at your next visit, you can enjoy entering and exiting from any direction and the ability to sit and relax while you enjoy a snack or a drink! We have music scheduled every week and a growing list of vendors. This week we welcomed new Florence restaurant Masa Mexicano, who will attend every week selling tortillas, chips, salsas, soups and more.
Stop by the purple market tent if you have any questions, want to grab a Bicycle Benefits sticker or Loyalty Card, or need to buy tokens with credit/debit or SNAP. Our SNAP Match program, which offers a $10 bonus each week to those using their SNAP benefits, got a boost this month with a generous grant from Baystate Health!
Hope to see you at the market, every Tuesday from 1:30-6:30.
|
|
Solar on the Farm!
Thank you Northeast Solar for installing solar power on the Grow Food Northampton Community Farm! These panels will supply power to our Community Garden, Giving Garden, Song Sparrow Farm, and Sawmill Herb Farm and the newest farm on the Grow Food Northampton Community Farm’s south parcel: 2 Cents Home Grown.
|
|
Shout Out to River Valley Co-op!
River Valley Co-op (RVC) and Grow Food Northampton’s partnership goes all the way back to when our organization was founded. River Valley Co-op was a founding donor that helped us to purchase the Bean and Allard farmland that would become the Grow Food Northampton Community Farm in 2010. Since those early days for both of our organizations, our partnership has continued to grow and flourish. Every aspect of Grow Food Northampton’s work has been strengthened by our partnership with RVC in many ways, big and small. As River Valley Co-Op prepares to open their new location in Easthampton, we look forward to being there to celebrate!
Read more here about all of the ways in which River Valley Co-op has supported our work.
|
|
|
i count the morning
stars the air so sweet i turn
riverdark with sound
- Sonia Sanchez, Haiku (I count the morning)
|
|
|
What We Are Reading This Month
 From the creator of the Bing cherry to farm worker activists who were instrumental in establishing the United Farm Workers organization that has been so formative in gaining workers’ rights for farm workers, Asian Americans have played key, yet unsung, roles in the agricultural history of the United States. This article tells the fascinating history of the many ways in which Asian Americans have enriched this country’s agricultural sector, as well as the myriad ways in which, throughout the last two centuries, anti-Asian racism in the U.S. impeded and subjugated Asian Americans in fields and on farms.
|
|
|
|
|
