April 29, 2020
Dear Friends,
Here are some GRuBby updates about how we’re adapting and transforming our programs to keep people safe and to share our resources with the broader community.
We’ve created a COVID-19 Resource page on our website, which we’ll continue to populate with more information over the coming weeks, including our standards to keep our staff & volunteers safe.
Lettuce Build Gardens! We’re aiming to increase our backyard garden building program from 20 to 150 households this year and are partnering with businesses and peer organizations to get households the resources they need to grow their own food.
Consider making a donation through GiveBIG by May 6th to help us gift more gardens this spring! Every $250 raised through this campaign will be matched 1:1 to build two additional backyard gardens. In the coming weeks, look for opportunities to request a garden and to provide other support for this project.
Garden Building Resource Sharing In addition, we’re pivoting to help other organizations, both locally and beyond, in launching their own backyard garden building projects. Look for our project manual online, as well as a series of short instructional videos on our methods.
Community Seed Shed We’re distributing thousands of seed packets through our Community Seed Shed outside our farm at 2016 Elliott Ave NW in Olympia. Seeds are available for free to anyone who needs them 24/7 and can be requested in bulk for neighborhood distribution. If you’re interested in large quantities of seeds, please email our Farm Manager, Heather@goodgrub.org.
The Main GRuB Farm is waking up for spring! Our core youth leadership for the farm will start by late April, with food distribution through our CSA and community partnerships. Although our CSA is sold out, we now have food gift cards available (for donations or individual use) and can double-up any EBT purchases. Our market stand will start the season with online, pre-orders & drive-by pick-ups.
On the Victory Farm, a core team of veteran volunteers will, once again, grow food for distribution through the Thurston County Food Bank and other community channels. We continue to offer online gatherings to our veteran population to keep them connected and engaged.
Our Wild Foods & Medicines programs have shifted to an online format, and our first classes on COVID-19 related topics had 50 attendees each! We’re offering these webinars for free for anyone who needs it and on a sliding scale for others. Our two Tribal educator cohorts now meet remotely, and we continue to respond to requests for trainings, workshops, and other resources related to care of self and community.
We’re limiting other in-person programs and new in-person volunteer opportunities for now. In the meantime, we’ll continue to offer online updates and ideas for how we can all support each other in staying connected, hopeful, and well-nourished.
Yours in growing healthy food, healthy people, and healthy community,
Deb Crockett
Executive Director
