by Alaya Battalia
Special to the Weekly
Lopez Fresh began in 2001 as collaboration between the Lopez Island Land Trust, Family Resource Center and the Food Bank with the intention of getting nutritious, fresh and local veggies, fruits, meat and dairy products to the people that need them, 24/7. In other words, as one Lopez Fresh volunteer stated, its purpose and her purpose as a volunteer are “to defeat hunger on Lopez Island.” Today, Lopez Fresh is coordinated by the Family Resource Center but still operates through a myriad of volunteers and community centered organizations. Most recently, Lopez Fresh has combined forces with the Lopez Grow a Row program by consolidating into one. Starting this year Lopez Fresh will be the only drop off/pick up location for the Lopez Grow a Row program. With these new changes taking place, this article is meant to help answer questions about the Lopez Grow a Row program and encourage all Lopezians to take part in the effort of keeping our food sources local, healthy and sustainable for all island residents. So what does sustainability through the Grow a Row program mean for our community?
Food Sustainability: Grow a Row encourages sustainable food production on Lopez by asking residents to plant vegetables and fruit wherever they can. The equation is simple: more gardens means more local food. The added altruistic twist occurs when you donate your delicious garden goodies to the Lopez Fresh Grow a Row program. It could be a row of sweet, crunchy carrots, a tomato pot on your front porch or a portion of your overall garden harvest. Whether you decide to plant a lot or a little is up to you. When you come to drop off vegetables please be sure to have them prewashed and write down what you have brought on the drop-off clipboard. To help make gardening more accessible, Lopez Fresh will intermittently have free seeds and vegetable starts to give away.
Economic Sustainability: occurs through the Lopez Fresh Grow a Row program in two main ways. With housing, transportation, food and electric costs on the rise household budgets continue to tighten for many families and individuals. Having a free source a fresh food can help lighten the high cost of island living that many residents choose to bear. Indeed, part of what makes that choice a bit easier is believing that your community is willing and able to support you when needed. Another hope is that by nurturing a fresh food culture on Lopez more and more islanders will be inclined to value sustainable, healthy and local food production. One perfect illustration of this was last summer when a volunteer gardener overheard two women gleefully exclaiming, “Oh my, look at those carrots!…Those are some real carrots!” as they opened the Lopez Fresh fridge to find a whole box of carrots she had just dropped off. After all, financial realities are not fixed for life. People who currently do not have a flexible income for purchasing pricier organic local produce may be more inclined to do so in the future if they have been able to access delicious Lopez fruits and vegetables during even the most difficult of times.
Social Sustainability: starts with you. Grow a Row is only an idea that holds very little ground without the support and participation of the community. Currently, volunteers pick up donated items and buy dairy and produce from Blossom Grocery and the Lopez Village Market for Lopez Fresh seven days a week. But in order to be truly sustainable we need to have a diverse volunteer group and diverse food sources. Will you join in our vegetable melting pot? If you would like to become a Lopez Fresh volunteer or have a garden/orchard and need help getting the food to Lopez Fresh, contact Alaya Battalia at 468-4117 or send an email to alaya@lifrc.org. All vegetable donations can be dropped off in the Lopez Fresh shed which is located next to Children’s Center/under the outdoor stairs leading up to the Family Resource Center. Stay tuned to Lopez Rocks and the Family Resource Center website for Grow a Row updates.
