Gardeners can help feed the hungry from their own back yard
Local gardeners can have a major impact in feeding Jackson County’s hungry by dedicating a row or more of their garden to ACCESS. It’s called “Plant a Row for the Hungry,” operated by ACCESS Food Share in Jackson County, and it helps get nutritious fresh produce to local families in need.
“If you garden, you can do something good for your community while you do what you love. Simply grow a few extra rows of vegetables in your garden and donate the produce to ACCESS Food Share,” said Nan King, ACCESS Food Share Garden Developer. “With your contributions, big or small, and those of other gardeners in the area, we hope to feed thousands of families.”
The need is high with local food donations necessary for thousands of hungry families each month. In 2011, ACCESS distributed over 44,000 food boxes and provided 2.9 million pounds of emergency food (55,000 pounds weekly). The number of people seeking food support has increased by over seven percent from 2009-10 to 2010-11, and 33 percent of those ACCESS is helping to feed are children.
Plant A Row is a unique, community-based program that supports food relief organizations. Launched in 1995 by the Garden Writers Association, Plant A Row’s mission is to provide an avenue through which individuals, corporations and over 84 million gardening households in the U.S. can help America’s most vulnerable citizens and the food agencies serving them. Plant A Row is endorsed by Feeding America (formerly America’s Second Harvest), Master Gardeners, American Community Gardening Association, American Nursery and Landscape Association, National Gardening Association and by nurseries, seedsmen and garden suppliers across the United States and Canada.
“Plant A Row is rooted in the heartfelt tradition of gardeners sharing a bountiful harvest with their neighbors who experience hunger or the threat of hunger,” said King.
For more information, to receive a Plant A Row starter package, or to find out the location and hours of a food pantry or other drop-off location when your crops are ready to harvest, contact King at (541) 779-6691 ext. 309, or freshaccess@accesshelps.org.
As the Community Action Agency of Jackson County, ACCESS has been helping Jackson County residents break the cycle of poverty since 1976. With a focus on education, ACCESS helps low-income families and seniors through economic crisis by guiding them through changes in habits to help them become self-sustaining. ACCESS currently serves Jackson County residents through 15 programs designed to address issues from one-time emergencies to longer-term issues. This institution is an equal opportunity provider.