Project Us Blog

Written by Katie Boudreaux

How do you feel about fast food? What about eating it for every meal? For people who live in areas with lack of access to nutritious and affordable foods, also known as food deserts, this has become their reality. High Point, North Carolina, a city where 19.4% of the population live in poverty, contains 7 food deserts. Growing High Point is a nonprofit organization that works to provide these areas with the fresh produce they lack. Their exceptional contributions could not be made without the help of their executive director, Victoria Hensley.

Hensley was inspired to join the team after gaining a better understanding of food insecurity through her work with Americorps, an organization that hosts a variety of service projects for American volunteers to work on for a specific amount of time. Since the first year of Growing High Point, she’s been working in the farms, pursuing their mission to transform any nearby vacant land into an urban farm, which is used to feed the community. Aside from their own farms, the nonprofit also supports several community farms in the city.

As the executive director, Hensley has many duties to perform. She comments, “I’m not sure I have a typical day.” Some days, she’s assisting in farm management or packing boxes for seniors. Other days, she’s floating between meetings or completing work in her office, such as grant writing or event planning. Either way, a dull day fails to arrive.

Although the COVID-19 virus has presented setbacks, the team has failed to let a pandemic put a stop to their wonderful work. As more people began to struggle with food insecurity, Growing High Point went to work. They continued bringing their fresh produce to their farmers markets and took extra measures to ensure the safety of their foods. Although they were forced to cancel many of their upcoming events, such as cookouts, festivals, and fundraising dinners, Growing High Point refused to let such setbacks discourage them or prohibit them from serving the community. When the pandemic first started heavily affecting the United States, volunteers were no longer able to assist in the farms, and the work was left to the farmers. Luckily, keeping up with social distancing and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines, they have slowly been able to welcome back volunteers, who are tackling the large workload the farmers were left with.

For Hensley, the volunteers are the ones that bring the project to life. Her favorite parts of the mission are her team and those who simply keep showing up. Seeing their dedication and hard work inspires her to persevere and keep giving back to the community, even in such challenging times. Still, her time with the volunteers goes beyond crossing things off the to-do list. It’s spent getting to know the family she’s building. She says, “While you’re out there sweating and weeding, you’re building a relationship with a new person, learning about their background, what brought them to the city, what their interests are. It’s not just about doing the work, but more of a bonding experience.”

Hensley has many aspirations for the future. She hopes to develop more vacant lots into growing spaces around the city, encourage more people to grow their own food and eat healthy and sustainably, plant a fruit orchard in a south side neighborhood, motivate more people to support their organization by shopping online at their micro-food hub, and work to create their new mobile grocery store. As Growing High Point continues to expand, Hensley encourages others to take the first step in their own communities. She insists that you ask for resources and jump at the opportunities around you, even if they’re out of your comfort zone. Getting involved is a reward in itself, whether you are strengthening communities or feeding people. No one will be able to take away your new experiences and the joy it will bring you.

Thank you, Victoria, for the work you’ve done in your community and in the lives of so many people. Thank you for working tirelessly to grow a better tomorrow.

Head over to https://growinghighpoint.org/ to learn more about Growing High Point!