The Dirt

Immediately following SFC’s long-anticipated move to its new center, we held our second annual Program Replication Training on June 10-12 – in our very own space! Twenty-two individuals representing 10 different entities from Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas came to learn how to implement one or more of SFC’s current programs; Grow Local community and school gardening, Farm Direct farm-to-institution, Sprouting Healthy Kids farm-to-school and food-systems education, and The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® cooking classes. Throughout the training, individuals engaged in planning sessions, participated in hands-on activities, spoke with program partners, and toured school and community gardens and SFC farmers’ markets. The training prepared these organizations to replicate program components in their own communities so more children and adults can “grow, share, and prepare healthy food.”

Our fabulous trainees gathered together for the first introductory session

Joy Casnovsky teaches knife skills to trainees

THK trainees gathered for a training session

Participants dove into hands-on training for The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® cooking classes and experienced what it’s like to facilitate a cooking class from start to finish. Not only did they sharpen their skills in the kitchen and create tasty recipes but they also learned how to effectively lead classes on nutrition and food education to prevent chronic diet-related disease. One participant later tested the roasted kale chip recipe on her young daughter who is a picky eater, and to her delight, it was a hit!

Vanessa Toro leads a Community Garden training session

Our Grow Local staff led engaging trainings on Spread the Harvest, Community Gardens, and School Gardens, complete with tours of school and community gardens where the group met local gardeners in action. For the School Garden training, Pickle Elementary School teacher Judith Hutchinson told her story of starting a school garden because she believed it would be beneficial to her students’ emotional, behavioral, and academic learning. She encouraged the group to always “celebrate the small accomplishments.”

Farm Direct trainees tour the SFC Farmers' Market East with Suzanne Santos

A visit to the SFC Farmers’ Market East, located adjacent from our new center, gave the group a chance to speak with local farmers and vendors and see firsthand how the Double Dollar Incentive Program functions. The topic of doubling the spending power of SNAP and WIC benefits at farmers’ markets was so popular that a lunchtime discussion group was created to further explore the topic with SFC staff.

Farm Direct trainees explore the SFC Farmers' Market East

The energy from the group was contagious. One attendee noted; “Hearing from those who actually run these programs – everyone from SFC staff and interns to food directors, farmers, and coordinators was the most valuable portion of this training!”

By Molly Costigan
AmeriCorps VISTA - Community Health Organizer

Sustainable Food Center partners with Marathon Kids to engage with parents, staff, and community members at partner elementary schools and facilitate the formation of wellness teams that participate in health and wellness activities. Wellness teams reach out to SFC for resources and programs, such as healthy cooking classes or school garden trainings. Leaders on the wellness team organize regular meetings and activities, and engage the school community in health and wellness issues.

Norman Elementary parent leader Philimena Dickson, has been involved with Cultivating Healthy Communities for almost three years. Through the wellness team, she has attended SFC’s The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® cooking class, Basic Organic Gardening class, and School Garden Leadership Training, and she and her family have helped with the installation and maintenance of a community garden at nearby St. James Episcopal church. She also participates in SFC’s Spread the Harvest program for her own family’s garden.

Why did you get involved with Sustainable Food Center and Marathon Kids?
It was definitely the gardening. We had a garden at our home, and I like gardening and knowing that you get fresh food from the garden and can feed your family well.

It is a struggle because sometimes you have sweets and the sweets are not good for you. Or you want to have something quick so you do not have to cook. But once you decide to train yourself you can see what you need to have energy all day.

What are some of your favorite things to grow?
Kale and tomatoes. I have tomatoes right now, at least three of them, that are ready to go into the ground. I will have to try again with carrots. If I have the right type of lettuce, like romaine, then I grow it too. We have cabbage now, and that is a favorite, and onions are pretty good. I would like to grow red onions.

What are some things that you have done here at the school or the church garden?
I am on the wellness team and get information out to the community and the parents. I am talking to more parents about what we do on the wellness team and what we are here to do for the community.

What are some of the things that you have learned as a wellness team leader?
I have learned more about how to communicate with people. If I learn here, I learn in my personal life, like how to keep the information that I have going and then pass it on or keep it on paper—and also trying to put it into the computer. I am starting to use the computer to keep up with names of wellness team members. It is a learning process and I am learning how to be an organizer. When I started I did not know how; I was shaking in my boots!

Why is this important to you?
Because I see how it helps my family, and we all have a healthier diet now.

By Joy Casnovsky
The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® Director

The foundation of The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® is the cadre of 40+ trained Facilitators that lead classes and workshops across Austin. These are community members who care deeply about helping others eat healthy and hone their cooking skills and confidence. Even though I adore working at Sustainable Food Center and thoroughly believe in our mission, I still sometimes get stuck in the day-to-day grind of running the Program (yes, I just admitted that!). However, my eyes always light up upon hearing stories first-hand from the Facilitators, like the ones I heard this week. It reminds me of the fantastic work we are doing in the community by cultivating leaders and connecting people to their food.

Ida is currently facilitating a six-week class at the HEB at William Cannon and I-35. As part of our GROW-SHARE-PREPARE model, we always use produce from one of our SFC Farmers’ Market in at least one of the six classes to introduce farmers’ market produce to the participants. Ida went to the SFC Farmers' Mkt -Triangle to buy strawberries and this is what she wrote me about her experience—

I just loved Phil the farmer he was so sweet and kind to me.  He gave me a $19.00 discount since I had bought 16 pints [of strawberries] for the class.  I did some shopping and got 2 more pints for my children.  Then I went back and said Phil you did not charge me right and he said you bought so many I wanted to give you a good deal and he thanked me for being honest.  I thought he did not use a calculator but he is one sharp little old man and he hand-picked all 18 pints to make sure he gave me the best strawberries for the class and they were delicious.  It was my husband’s birthday and I bought a plate full of vegan cupcakes, olive & rosemary bread, wheat bread, and  some Indian food since it was a special day at our home. I was the first customer so I got the best of everything they had.  So I came back with lots of goodies.  So everything went very very well at the farmer’s market. 

Ida eating strawberries from the market

Roseanna is also facilitating a six-week class, but is at the HEB at Rundberg and North Lamar. The six-week model aims to provide a supportive atmosphere for people to make those cooking and dietary changes. This story exemplifies that perfectly!

Tonight the question was asked what they wanted to get out of these next 5 weeks. Almost everyone is having major physical challenges and all of them showed a genuine concern for their overall health and really desired changes. I had some index cards with me and had an idea for this group. I shared with them on how I really applauded their humbleness on what they shared and I wanted them to take it one step further and that was to write down the bullets of what they had shared and tack on there a goal and we would review on the last week. They loved that and I had one come up to me and shared her desire to regain her ability to dream again and set goals for herself so I gave her some tools to help her achieve that. Another came up and really shared some personal info about herself so I made myself her accountability partner if you will for the next 5 weeks. This is a group that really wants it and I am really in a state of expectancy for them.

Roseanna going over The Happy Plate

Overview

Sustainable Food Center (SFC) cultivates a healthy community by strengthening the local food system and improving access to nutritious, affordable food. SFC’s Grow Local program offers the resources and education to enable children and adults in Central Texas to develop skills in organic food production, as well as an understanding of the importance of local food production for the health and well-being of themselves, their families and community, and the environment. We are looking for a dynamic, English-Spanish bilingual, organized individual to coordinate Grow Local’s classes and trainings, manage the Citizen Gardener program, and provide support to new and existing community gardens.

Position Description

The Education & Community Garden Coordinator AmeriCorps*VISTA will oversee administration of Grow Local’s organic food gardening classes and garden leadership trainings, including the Citizen Gardener education and volunteering program. The VISTA will also share responsibility for coordinating SFC’s fiscal sponsorship of community gardens and offering support to new and existing community gardens in the Austin area. Additionally, the VISTA will help enhance and expand Grow Local’s class and outreach materials to make them more culturally relevant and appropriate for recent-immigrant and/or low-income Austin residents.

Key Responsibilities

• Coordinate scheduling and logistics for Basic Organic Gardening, Citizen Gardener, and specialized topic gardening classes and for School and Community Garden Leadership trainings
• Coordinate Basic Organic Gardening and Citizen Gardener teacher trainings
• Oversee and track Citizen Gardener volunteer hours
• Administrate Citizen Gardener Facebook page and newsletter
• Assist with planning and logistics of Citizen Gardener graduation events
• Conduct outreach, material preparation, and follow-up for all Grow Local classes
• Assist with enhancement and expansion of Grow Local class and outreach materials to improve cultural relevance and appropriateness for recent-immigrant and/or low-income Austin residents
• >Revise and update class materials in English and Spanish as needed
• Create and distribute Grow Local Gardening Information email
• Manage SFC community garden sponsorship
• Assist with development and implementation of expanded assistance protocol for community gardens

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Arts or Sciences or appropriate experience
• MUST be bilingual (English/Spanish). Excellent written and oral communication skills in both languages.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team>
• Strong time management and organizational skills with ability to manage multiple projects
• Strong fiscal management skills
• Computer proficiency, including Microsoft Office (proficiency in Adobe InDesign & web application is a plus)
• Knowledge and experience with food gardening, farm-to-school, and healthy cooking preferred
• Ability to work a flexible schedule
• Reliable transportation
• Dedicated team-player who is culturally sensitive
• Dynamic personality with good sense of humor and appreciation for healthy, local food.

Compensation: Sustainable Food Center is an equal opportunity employer; women and people of color are encouraged to apply. This is a full-time (40 hours per week), one-year position. Serving as an AmeriCorps*VISTA member, you are eligible for the following: living allowance of $11,136 per year, health insurance, childcare assistance, professional development opportunities, student loan deferment, assistance with relocation costs, and, upon completion of the program, a choice of a $5,550 education award or a $1,500 cash stipend.

To Apply:

Apply through AmeriCorps website: https://my.americorps.gov/ AND

Email resume, cover letter, three references, and a Spanish/English writing sample (1 page) to Sari Albornoz, Grow Local Director at sari AT sustainablefoodcenter DOT org.

No phone calls, por favor.

Applications accepted until May 20, 2013. Position begins August 13, 2013.

To learn more about Sustainable Food Center, go to: www.sustainablefoodcenter.org. To learn more about VISTA, go to http://www.americorps.gov/about/programs/vista.asp

Without its 40+ Facilitators, The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® would not be able to operate. The Program is built upon the peer to peer model, training community members to become Facilitators. Informative (and fun!) six-week classes and workshops are then delivered to communities in need.  One such Facilitator is FayeLynn, who has been facilitating since 2008.

What made you want to become a Facilitator?

Being raised in a family of Seventh Day Adventists and by a nurse and a doctor, I was taught from early on the importance of food and health. My mom, who is 90, is a fantabulous cook! I grew up with her giving healthy cooking classes and she used to say “a lot of people are digging their graves with their forks.

I first took The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® class (as a participant) at Dove Springs Recreation Center. I was so impressed with the information and how accessible it was. It was so practical. And I liked the fact that the participants got the grocery bags to go home and practice the recipe at home—that’s amazing! I feel that the Program reaches people that might not have this information, but who need it. I also like that the classes are made up of “real people,” not just professional culinary artists. Everyone has real life experiences, which is important.

Growing up did you ever “rebel” against this healthy lifestyle?

As a child, I got very stick one time. My mom told me I was sick because I wasn’t eating my vegetables. I associated that feeling of sickness with not eating my vegetables and ever since then, haven’t stopped eating them. I rarely get sick. I didn’t have my first Sprite until I was 14!

How has Facilitating affected your own life in terms of healthy eating?

Although I grew up eating healthy and knowing its benefits, I think the culinary skills skipped a generation. Combining food in a way that will be tasty, the art of cooking, that is hard for me. I cannot cook like my mom. I will make dishes for my family that my mom makes and my kids like her version way better! Every time I lead a class as a Facilitator with The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre®, I learn something new.  Facilitating challenges me.

FayeLynn (right) helping a participant read a food label.

Sustainable Food Center is happy to announce the availability of our Program Replication Guides as well as the schedule and location for our 2013 Program Replication Training.

Program replication guides are available for our Grow Local community and school gardening program, Farm Direct farm-to-institution efforts, nutrition programming based on The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® cooking classes, and the Sprouting Healthy Kids farm-to-school and food-systems education program (combination of Farm Direct and Grow Local). Each guide is based on SFC’s programmatic practices, developed over 40 years of organizational experience. The guides include detailed how-to information for community-based, local food-systems programs, including gardening, farm marketing, and healthy cooking programs. For additional information on content and ordering, please visit SFC’s web store, http://food.convio.net/site/Ecommerce?store_id=1201.

SFC will also offer in-person, hands-on Program Replication Training for each of our program areas. These trainings will be held at Sustainable Food Center’s new facility located in Austin (set to open May 2013), and will begin the morning of Monday, June 10, 2013 and end the afternoon of Wednesday, June 12.

The trainings are led by SFC staff and partners and are designed for community-based organizations, local government entities, and other groups interested in sustainable and local food systems programming. Participants will leave with program planning, implementation, and evaluation tools and resources needed to initiate gardening, farm marketing, and healthy cooking programs within their own communities. Participants will also have access to SFC staff for ongoing technical assistance and consultation. It is expected that participating groups will be able to launch programming within one year of the training. The full descriptions of each program can be found on the SFC website, www.sustainablefoodcenter.org.

For additional information on the trainings, including cost and registration information, please contact:

Andrew W. Smiley, Deputy Director
andrew@sustainablefoodcenter.org
512-236-0074 ext. 102

The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® started 2013 with a bang—7 six-week classes began since January 15! Partner sites include AISD schools, UT Elementary School, YMCA and People’s Community Clinic. This morning I had a chance to sit in on a class making Baked Sweet Potato Fries from our cookbook. The sweet potatoes were purchased from Johnson’s Backyard Garden, one of our vendors at the SFC Farmers' Markets. In each six-week class series, we use market-fresh produce to reinforce the mantra of Grow.Share.Prepare. So what do you say? Are you ready to do some preparing? Here’s the recipe to get you started!

                                  Liz Aguilar and Lourdes Quijada serving up Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients

4 large sweet potatoes

2 tbsp canola oil

¼ tsp ground cumin

¼ tsp ground coriander

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 400º F.

Scrub well or peel the sweet potatoes.

Cut the sweet potatoes into French fry-sized pieces (approx. ½ in thick)

Sprinkle cumin, coriander, salt and pepper on top.

Mix until the sweet potatoes are lightly coated with the spices.

Lay potatoes out in a single layer on a baking sheet.

Bake for 30-45 minutes or until lightly browned.

Serves 6 at $.49 per serving

By the way, did you know that coriander is actually the seed of cilantro? Wait until May when cilantro starts to “bolt” or seed and then harvest the seed, grind and—voila—you have coriander!

Co-written by Jonathan Wagner, Grace River, Roger Duck and Grow Local

 We have a variety of stories to showcase what happens when you mix a group of aspiring gardeners and two great teachers in a community garden.

Jonathan Wagner showed up on January 12th with 29 other classmates to a drizzling, gray morning at New Day Community Garden expecting to "knock off one of my biggest New Year's resolutions: start a garden...". He was on track for getting involved in the Austin gardening and local food movement, graduating from the Austin Permaculture Guild Design class in December of 2011, but the Citizen Gardener course proved a much different experience, with a hands-on focus from the start!

 After learning how to site and prepare an area for a garden, constructing a raised bed, AND building a compost pile on day 1, Jonathan recounted "Who knew it was really this easy? Especially with 20+ [people] lending a hand. The moral: Friends = cheap labor".

 
Jonathan Wagner's notes with illustrations for building a raised bed and hoop house.

Indeed, one of the goals of the class is to provide the tools to make gardening manageable, do-able, and fun for everyone. But when planning for the class, there are aspects we at SFC cannot deliberately design, aspects that make each class unique. SFC brings together the class curriculum, the teachers, and the student, and the mix is there for the creation of relationships and community.

Grace Rivera’s experience highlights the essence of Citizen Gardener. She joined the Citizen Gardener 37 class eager to “Harvest NOW!” a catchphrase she’d been considering proposing for the gardening movement. As she planted seeds and transplants, her haste for a final end product was replaced with mindfulness for the process of gardening itself.

“Something about working with the soil and the seeds slowed me down and it felt great! I took notice of the seasons and more importantly, I talked with the people who were helping me learn. That’s when I realized I wanted to harvest something more. I wanted to harvest the intangible...”

 She even spent her first weekend after the class creating her own beds, advising her fellow students via the Citizen Gardener facebook group to “start small first”. Grace also began her community service component soon after her Citizen Gardener class ended, spending  a Saturday morning with Green Corn Project, an SFC community partner, learning to germinate seeds.

 Her enthusiasm is contagious when you hear her speak about her experience: “I am a few volunteer hours closer to getting my Citizen Gardener certificate from the Sustainable Food Center and what I got out of it was way more than I put in! Not only did I learn about planting, nurturing, and transplanting seeds and seedlings, I also found whole other group of wonderful people making their world a better place through community service”.

 Jonathan Wagner and a fellow classmate, Roger Duck, as a result of the Citizen Gardener class, obtained a plot at New Day Community Garden. Introduced to this new community, they also eagerly began their community service projects at this site.

 Jonathan‘s goals are to, “with the help of a colleague, Roger”, utilize “the knowledge learned to relocate and redesign the existing compost facility...”.  He and Roger plan to develop signage for the compost that will be “designed for all ages to take part in the physical act and (equally as important) the educational aspects of the composting process as a whole. Our goal is to have the signage explain the process in a beautiful, yet coherently simple way where there is room for fun; to ensure the success of the facility.”

 Roger Duck reflects on this newfound opportunity, “I didn’t just get a plot to garden at with New Day Community Garden, I gained a community of friends...” and “I feel I have a place to contribute, and have a community that is supportive of me. The volunteer hours enabled me to plant people and community seeds, and that resulting growth of friendships, has been a New Day for me.”

 Encouraged by Dick Pierce, Jenni Lafferty, and the SFC team, Jonathan urges everyone to “Get out and get involved in your community. There are great folks out there just waiting to meet YOU and get inspired BY YOU. Don’t delay”.

 Jonathan Wagner's reflections.

 True to the point, while the Citizen Gardener class teaches you the practical skills of gardening, do not be surprised if you find also inspiration from others and yourself in the new adventures that becoming a Citizen Gardener brings forth.

To register for Citizen Gardener, click here.

To learn more about New Day Community Garden, visit their site. 

Did you know that SFC’s Grow Local program has provided assistance to more than 130 school gardens in the Austin area? These gardens can be found at public schools and private schools, from preschools to high schools and every level in between. Some school gardens are incorporated into classroom lessons or afterschool clubs, others are used to produce food for the cafeteria, farmers’ markets, or food pantries, and still others serve as places for parents and community members to grow healthy food for their families. What these school gardens all have in common is that they serve as places for children (and adults!) to learn about where food comes from, how it is grown, and how delicious and fun eating fresh fruits and vegetables can be!

The assistance that SFC provides to school gardens includes our free School Garden Leadership trainings, Spread the Harvest resources, in-class and afterschool lessons & activities, School Garden Volunteer matching, consultation, grant assistance, and more. SFC’s recent School Garden Leadership training at Mendez Middle School successfully inspired and empowered dozens of leaders to start and expand garden projects at their schools, and we look forward to providing continuing support to these endeavors. Check SFC’s Events page for our next School Garden Leadership training in early 2013. You can find more information about how SFC promotes school gardening success in Austin here: http://www.sustainablefoodcenter.org/grow-local/school-gardens

If you know of any school garden projects that aren’t yet connected with SFC, we’d love to hear from them! Please contact Jess Guffey, Grow Local Co-Director, at jess (at) sustainablefoodcenter (dot) org, to find out how we can offer assistance.

The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® (THK) Program Director, Joy Casnovsky, had the opportunity to travel to San Francisco for the annual American Public Health Conference, the largest conference of its kind in the US. With over 12,500 people in attendance, there was a little public health for everyone. THK submitted an abstract, which was accepted as part of the session titled, “"Nutrition Education, Culinary, and Gardening Programs.” The presentation focused on a small research project conducted with the UT School of Public Health (UTSPH) that measured eating habits before and after participants enrolled in THK. Among some of the dietary improvements were an increased consumption of vegetables, a decreased consumption of fruit juice (whole fruit is always better to eat!), and decreased use of cooking with lard and oils. The conference was a great way to exemplify the partnership that SFC shares with UTSPH, which helps SFC improve its programs offered to the public based on the evaluations that UTSPH conducts. Joy was also elated to hear several of her favorite public health heroes speak, including Marion Nestle from NYU, Michele Simon, author of Appetite for Profit, and David Wallinga of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. Not to mention she was able to put the face behind the partner of Wholesome Wave, the foundation that is funding the double dollar matching program at the SFC East Market. Sustainable Food Center is proud to be recognized as one of the players on a national level that is promoting a more just, assessable and healthy food system.