Stepping Into September
We started off this growing season with such hot, dry conditions that worried growers and community members alike. July offered a small variety of harvest which had our neighbors asking for more. “When will we have watermelon?” “I really want to see green peppers!” “Can we get more fruit please?” “I was hoping you had some eggplant today.”
August came and granted all of these wishes :)
More fruit like watermelon, cantaloupe, plums, and peaches popped up! Peppers of all varieties were ready to be harvested! Eggplants started hanging down from their leaves! And so many more gifts of the Earth welcomed us, ready to be shared with the greater Erie community.
Across the two Groundwork Erie Pay What You Can markets, we have served 385 people in the month of August with 2,346 pounds of food. This adds to the overall PWYC coalition total of about 2,053 people served with 10,056 pounds of food since the season start in early July. This coalition is only made possible by our invaluable partners, Erie FPAC and BUILD. It’s a beautiful thing to see the sustainable, local food system that we’re all creating thrive - allowing easy access to fresh foods for all in the neighborhood.
Meeting these neighbors and hearing the assortment of methods they have to utilize their market finds each week is an even more beautiful display of our alternative food system in action. Peach cobbler has been made for a granddaughter’s birthday. Borscht was made with the beets donated by Young Erie Professionals. Marigold flowers from our 4th street farm were used in religious celebrations and home altars. Tomato-cucumber salad was made for a week of lunch meal prep. And of course, everyone LOVES fried green tomatoes!
We are eagerly awaiting September’s farmers markets, and can’t wait to share more joy and food with our Erie neighbors.
MARKET GREEN TEAMER OF THE MONTH
ELEFTHERIA
When it comes to hard-working green teamers, Eleftheria is a shining example. This summer, she worked alongside her other 4th St farm teammates each week to plant, water, weed, maintain, and harvest food for Friday’s market. When Fridays finally did come around, she took charge and was dedicated to her craft. Unloading produce from the van, setting it out on the tables in the most visually appealing way, organizing jumbles of fruit and vegetables underneath the tables to be our “backstock”, talking to customers about the foods they picked out, weighing bags of produce, tallying the number of people served. She did it all and she loved it all.
The one part she didn’t like was when the market started to slow down. She has worked at other markets, similar to our Pay What You Can stands, and really enjoys the hustle and bustle of interacting with customers. Whenever she joined on Wednesday afternoons to aid the ECAT market on East Ave, she would feel the thrill during our 4 o’clock rush; however, when things started to slow down, she always asked for more work. “Should we restock corn or wait until later?” “Let’s consolidate our produce onto two tables to clean up the stand a bit.” “I’m going to start counting the money.” Whatever it was that she could do to be helpful, Ellie did.
When asked what her favorite part of having a summer job at Groundwork Erie was, she always said it was running the market, “I like to serve people.”
We are so glad to have served alongside Eleftheria this summer, and hope to see her back soon!
TALES FROM MARKET
2:00pm on Friday rolls around each week, and we come to a close on Groundwork Erie’s 4th St market. Although we have an average of 46 people come through, our abundance of produce miraculously seems to take a page out of the “feeding of the 5000” playbook and never diminishes.
The Green Team teenagers begin to load up a bag or two each with tasty fruits and vegetables to bring home to their families. Even after the hungry teens have picked their way through the food, we still always have some remaining. That is why we choose to share with the prominent Emmaus Ministries Soup Kitchen. With its motto being “Bread for the Body. Care for the Soul.”, we believe they match our PWYC model well. That is, both organizations have an understanding that each person deserves the dignity of nourishing their body without the stress and anxiety of financial factors.
Each week, the Green Team has brought our leftover bounty over to Emmaus and given it to the head chef, Carly. She then utilizes the produce in her Friday night dinner to be shared with all in the dining room. We consider ourselves lucky to have a partnership like Emmaus Ministries, so that no food goes to waste and our outstretched hand of people served can be expanded.
FARM SHOUTOUT - POST APPLES FARM
One of our most valued partners in our Pay What You Can effort is Post Apples Farm. This family farm has been in operation for over one hundred years, starting in 1890. Ana from Post Apples says “our farm has been rooted in this area for five generations, and it’s always been our mission to care for our neighbors while stewarding the land.” This care and dedication definitely extends to our Pay What You Can coalition, as Post Apples is always making sure we receive the freshest, tastiest produce.
Ana works with our coalition to diligently pack and deliver our produce orders each week. She says she does this because she believes “everyone deserves access to fresh, local produce at its peak nutrition.” She echoes the values of the Pay What You Can model when she continues, “food is more than just a meal - it’s health, it’s dignity, it’s community.” We’re grateful to have someone like Ana and all of Post Apples Farm as part of our community. They show great passion and commitment to our local food system and believe by sharing their food with others they are “investing in a stronger, healthier community for generations to come.”
Thank you Post Apples for all that you do!
MARKET SCHEDULE
Groundwork Erie runs two markets:
Wednesday 4:00-6:00pm at 650 East Ave
Friday 12:00-2:00pm at 310 E 4th St
Stop by either of these markets, or the coalition’s remaining markets below, to try some fresh, local produce and join the movement for an alternative food system!
