First Distribution of 2015!

With a line of 20 people at 5:15 already awaiting the opening of the Veggie Stand, the first distribution last night was a success!!  Ominous clouds hung in the sky, but that didn’t stop about 60 people from coming out to the stand at South 10th and Pine St.  We were able to hand out over 500 pounds of produce thanks to the Easton Urban farm, LaFarm, and East 40 (Northampton Community College’s farm).  We also had the dietitian from Easton Hospital, Alison, come with a sample of a healthy vegetable salad recipe and sample featuring veggies we had at the stand. Everything ran very smoothly – even the hasty clean-up due to the impending storm –  thanks to our volunteers from Lafayette and the community. We had just enough people to be able to conduct surveys and explain the vegetables, while refilling the baskets from the seemingly bottomless supply of squash. All of the left over vegetables were handed off to Nancy from the Easton Hunger Coalition to be taken to a food pantry in order to serve as many families as possible.

This whole week had been a whirlwind of coordinating cooler drop-offs and pick-ups for donations, finding cold storage space, putting together various recipes and signs, and harvesting vegetables at the Urban Farm and LaFarm for the stand. All the hard work paid off!  As I saw the smiling faces of West Ward residents picking out their vegetables, I felt pride in all the work Alexa and I have put in to make this project into something great. When out in the field it is sometimes hard to see the big picture outcome; however last night I finally realized the impact VIC has on the community and felt honored to be a part of the project. While the future of VIC is unknown, it is rewarding to know that this week we helped numerous families get fresh vegetables to put on their table.

As the weeks progress, we aim to stream-line our harvest process at both the Urban Farm and LaFarm. We also hope to increase our number of attendees at the stand and create an even more interactive community space. In addition, we hope to stay in communication with dining services throughout the summer, since they provide us cold storage space. We had just enough room this week, but as harvest becomes more bountiful, we might have to find more storage places. Alexa and I had to trouble shoot all issues (big and small) throughout the week, which paid off because the stand ran as smoothly as we could have imagined. I now realize all the important details that must be accounted for. For example, the recipe board from last year could not be found, so we improvised with a cork board and an easel to be able to display the recipes for participants. Recipe sharing is important to the building of community strength and we were very happy with what we were able to bring to the community. Overall the first night was a great success and I look forward to many more Thursday evenings at the Veggie Stand.