Meet OGC Mission Fund Recipient: Marion Polk Food Share
Marion Polk Food Share’s mission is to bring people together to end hunger and its root causes. And they do that in multiple innovative ways.
Their youth farm focuses on empowerment and leadership development and uses farming as the vehicle to provide that training. Marion Polk is involving youth in collective decision making, and the youth crew leaders have already weighed in on some topics (like expressing an interest in growing odd or big veggies to compete in the state fair). They're experimenting with dry farming practices and working on providing as much culturally relevant food as possible (like garbanzo beans, lamb’s quarters and pigweed). The youth farm also produces the food that’s vital for their other programs – Farm Share Rx and mobile food pantries.
Farm Share RX’s goal is to provide low-income community members who are at risk of dietary-related illnesses with free produce. They partner with three different clinics where dietitians and clinicians guide selections for who most needs these foods. Selections are driven by things like prevalence of food insecurity, an interest in eating more produce and most importantly, an illness of some kind that can be improved with the addition of fruits and veggies. For participants, the program is lifechanging and completely free.
Marion Polk Food Share’s three mobile pantries reach people who have challenges to accessing fresh produce, like lack of transportation, physical disabilities, health related issues or farm workers who can’t leave the farm. These are pop up pantries that travel to places where people need them most.
In 2023, OGC gave Marion Polk Food Share an unrestricted Mission Fund Grant that was used for things like seeds, supplies, potting mix and stipends for the youth farmers.
“Thanks, OGC, for your support” said Laura Engle, grants manager at Marion Polk Food Share. “The need in our community is greater than we currently have capacity for, and every dollar helps us grow more food for the people who need it most.”
OGC’s Mission Fund Grant Program helps educate youth about organic agriculture, increase the accessibility of organic food to underserved communities, build equity in our food system and more. Marion Polk Food Share is just one of the many organizations the Mission Fund supported in 2023. Find a list of all our recent grant recipients here.
