Partnering with Early Childhood Education Centers
Brandice Kirchner, Tikkun Ha-Ir
Brandice will share how this past summer, the Veggie Chop Shop program provided weekly meals to nine different childcare centers, primarily in low-income neighborhoods of Milwaukee. Since the preparation and expense of regularly feeding the children falls on that of the administrator with a shoestring budget, it was a welcome opportunity to offer weekly robust vegetarian meals.
Link to Video Recording not available
Wholesale Food Rescue
Jillian Moore, Cascadia Produce
Stacey Crnich, GoodRoots NW
The presentation will describe the size of the Wholesale Food Recovery opportunity, and how it benefits farmers and food security alike. Good Roots, a downstream customer who both purchases and receives donations of wholesale recovered food, will speak on what access to below wholesale cost fresh food has enabled for the organization, as well as the different channels of distribution she works with to place food items that don’t work in the Market setting.
Building A University Food Pantry
Sarah Farrugia, Oakhurst Food Pantry
This session is designed to educate, inspire, and explore how we distribute resources within our own communities. Participants will gain insight to what this looks like on a college campus and how it can be recreated in other higher education settings.
Go Big or Go Home Large-Scale Activities
Clay Jarratt, After the Harvest, Amazing Sweet Corn Glean-a-Thon
Kathryn Howard, PFTP, 500 Foot Char-FruitTree Board
Think big! These panelists will talk about how they pull off large scale events. Clay will provide an overview of our annual glean-a-thon events including planning, partnering with corporate sponsors to secure funding and volunteer teams, providing funding to farmers to cover the costs associated with planting, getting media coverage, team building and competitive strategies and activities for harvest teams, and harvesting and delivery of the crop. Kathryn will share the details of how corporate sponsorship and volunteer engagement allowed Portland Fruit Tree Project to break a Guinness book record with a 500 foot char”fruit”erie board.
Reefers, Radishes, and Regrets: The Ups and Downs of Rescuing Produce by the Truckload
Katherine Kennedy and Savannah Carter, Concrete Jungle, Produce Buyers Club
Concrete Jungle will discuss how using thoughtful planning, “failing forward,” and making the most of their sourcing, networking, and agricultural knowledge helped them develop the Produce Buyers Club, a program to distribute excess farm produce to thousands of community members in their area.
Purchasing Produce Programs
Clay Jarratt, After the Harvest
Shannon Hickey, Hope’s Harvest
These panelists will share different models for produce purchase programs. Clay will discuss how After the Harvest partners with farmers and wholesalers in Amish/Mennonite Communities to rescue hundreds of thousands of pounds of fresh local produce annually. No electricity? No email? No problem. Shannon will share the current initiatives by Hope's Harvest to purchase contracted and surplus produce from local farms for the purposes of serving the hunger relief market. Attendees will learn about innovative ways to bring locally grown food to historically disadvantaged communities year-round.
Measuring On Farm Harvest Potential
Lisa K. Johnson, Lisa K. Johnson Consulting
Lynette Johnson, SOSA
Tom O’Donnell, EPA via Zoom
Research by Dr. Lisa K. Johnson on post-harvest yield potential can be put directly into practice by gleaners as a way to better understand what remains in the field and to help the gleaning process also provide valuable information to the farmer that may impact growing and harvesting decisions in future seasons. The Row by Row project undertaken by the Society of St. Andrew in Tennessee under the guidance of Dr. Lisa K Johnson provides a case study in the assessment process and impact potential.
Fundraising
Morgan Curry, Skagit Gleaners
This session will explore helpful grant writing tips and methods, empowering attendees with knowledge and tools needed to maximize their fundraising efforts.
Time to Process, Integration of Ideas & Feelings “Rest and Reflect”
Karen Lemke, K Lemke Consulting
This session involves breathing, movement and guided meditation to prepare body and mind to enter the dream space to imagine and amplify place-based food solutions already among us. After the guided meditation, Karen will guide attendees on how to draw their personal map with questions to pose as they return to their homes. Participants are invited to share insights the activity brought to their attention.
Ready Set Go! Volunteer Engagement
Kacey Carpenter
Join Kacey Carpenter, author and community organizer, in an interactive workshop for engaging, energizing, and empowering volunteers. Learn from real-life case studies from his new book, gain practical tips for volunteer onboarding and training including digital tools and social media, ask questions, and share best practices with your peers.