Thanks to the sprawling campus garden planted in early spring, students are replacing cooked meals with over-filled baskets of fresh produce for the Salvation Army to prepare.

“What has been really exciting for us is how fruitful the garden has been,” said Amy Heard, Campus Kitchen President. “I went one day and we filled up a basket with squash and other beautiful fruits. I was so amazed. I figured in our first year we were just going to be learning things.”

Heard comes from a Campus Kitchen background; she began doing work with the Campus Kitchen at Washington and Lee, picking up hundreds of eggs in a Walmart food recovery shift. Later, Heard headed up the backpack program which sends children home with healthy snacks to keep them fed over the weekend.

A Baylor University transfer, Heard has plans to help expand the program similarly to her Washington and Lee work. In addition to the garden, a new community health space (with demo kitchen) located in downtown Waco may soon house the Campus Kitchen at Baylor University’s own backpack program.

For now Campus Kitchen volunteers – from environmental science majors to a 76-year military veteran turned student – continue to harvest okra, melons, and tomatoes on vines so tall they’re almost falling over.

“The garden now is really noticeable,” said Heard. “You drive by it and you can see these massive plants overflowing from their beds.”

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Megan worked closely with the national office to develop her leadership skills.

*Written by Megan Crowe, AmeriCorps VISTA, Capital Area Food Bank

A CKP blog post by Taylor Reno a few weeks ago  caught my eye: “CKP Prepares Students for a Future in the Food World”.  I decided to read on and became further intrigued when I saw the picture just below the title – I took that picture!  I was hooked, I had to read this.

In her post, Reno writes, “Your work with The Campus Kitchens Project could guide you to your future career whether you started working with Campus Kitchen because you love to cook or have a passion for social justice.”

For me, it was neither.  I was led to the Campus Kitchen at Gettysburg College because:

1) I needed a summer job

2) They were hiring someone to develop their nutrition programs and nutrition was a field I had recently decided I wanted to pursue.

After working with the Campus Kitchens Project for two years, I left with a love of cooking and a passion for social justice. I also left with much, much more. Campus Kitchens equipped me with the skills to confidently walk into a job interview and prove to the employer that I was the right person for the job.

Have you…

Recruited, trained, and retained volunteers?  Check, check, and check.

Juggled several tasks at one time and completed them on schedule?  Sure, I’ve done it.

Worked with community-based agencies to expand the reach of a program and created/maintained partnerships?  Ohhh yea.

Coordinated courses?  Managed the classroom?  Worked with diverse participants?  All the time.

And here’s my favorite.  Maintained accurate records?  Captured program through photos and video?  Completed reporting and paperwork on a timely basis?  Yup, thanks Ariel.

I could go through a job’s list of duties and relate each of them to something I had done with the Campus Kitchen.

So what did I do with CKP, and what do I do now?

I worked with the Campus Kitchens Project at Gettysburg College for two years, starting as a summer intern charged with developing a nutrition program to run over the summer months.  After the summer I was hired to continue my work as the Nutrition Program Coordinator, and that summer nutrition program turned into something that occurred every semester. The program, “Green Goodies”, taught students about nutrition, food justice, farming, and food waste, to name a few.

We utilized resources we had around us at the college and in the community, planning field trips each lesson to places like the on-campus garden, the college dining hall, the food pantry, the local grocery store, and the senior center.

I also led cooking shifts to provide meals to the senior center on Fridays.  I especially liked leading shifts between September and December because it was apple season!  I loved making applesauce from scratch for the seniors and loved teaching volunteers how easy it was to make.

I currently work at the Capital Area Food Bank in Washington D.C. coordinating Share our Strength’s Cooking Matters™ program.  This innovative nutrition program helps families by teaching them how to prepare healthy, low-cost meals and receive the most nutrition from a limited budget.  My day to day duties include things like gathering food and cooking materials for courses, recruiting and managing culinary and nutrition volunteers to teach courses, and maintaining relationships with course sites in the D.C. Metro area.

My job is an AmeriCorps position, a program I highly recommend to anyone interested in a career in social justice. As an Americorps member, I am able to pursue something I love to do while at the same time gain valuable skills and experience in my desired field.  AmeriCorps opportunities are growing, see for yourself!

Campus Kitchens was a great jumpstart to my future. Working with CKP allowed me to explore issues I had never previously encountered, move out of my comfort zone, learn that I loved working with a community, and gain invaluable skills that helped me land a job after I graduated in May 2010.  I’ve benefited from a great network of CKP support with passionate individuals who are eager to help you in any way possible.

Three years ago I never would have thought I would love cooking or be passionate about social justice, but Campus Kitchens can do that to you.

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We still have a few slots open for Campus Kitchens who complete the AmeriCorps* National Direct Service Application by no later than August 13, 5 p.m. EST.

Approved Campus Kitchens will receive three AmeriCorps* service members each – that’s right, a small army – to help advance the national objectives of the HandsOn Corps program.

Program requirements include: supervision by a full-time staff member, host site training, background checks, compliance with the AmeriCorps regulations, reporting, and more.

What you get: a dedicated volunteer force to restructure your leadership team, keep kitchen shifts running smoothly, start up a culinary job training program, or whatever your community/volunteers desire.

Take a look at the information and application attached below, and don’t hesitate to contact Maureen -mroche@campuskitchens.org – if you have any questions.

Below are the revised, important dates and application downloads:

• Host Site Application Technical Assistance Calls: July 14
• Host Site Applications Due: August 13
  
• Host Site Selection Announcements: August 27
  
• National Direct Member Selection Date: September 27
• National Direct Member Start Date: October 4 – November 1

CKP_2010_National Direct RFP Extension

CKP_2010_National Direct Application Extension

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Curious about how they gathered volunteers this past MLK Day?

Here’s a quick look at what goes on, with inspiration (we hope) for volunteers at your Campus Kitchen.

In this video:
Cindy Slavantis, state office manager at The Corporation for Community and National Service, and daughter Julia

Carol and Gagan, also of The Corporation for Community and National Service

Kristian Gray of The Collegiate Leadership Program High School

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 The conference got underway Friday morning and, might I say, was a huge success. The whole weekend was catered by the amazing Fresh Start catering program through DC Central Kitchen. At the conference, students got to hear from many guest speakers and gained valuble tips and insights from them, as well as from fellow attendees. Topics at the conference included: fundraising, local food, nutrition, grant writing, community relationships, social media, leadership, and nonprofit professionalism. The conference came to a close on Saturday evening at a delicious local restaurant, Busboys and Poets. DCCK/CKP founder, Robert Egger, gave the closing speech and left the students and staff with a renewed sense of purpose.

The CKP staff would like to thank everyone who attended the conference as well as our awesome speakers and the generous donors and sponsors who made it all possible! Another successful conference as we enter into ‘Our New Millennium’…

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For the full article: http://www.abpnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4422&Itemid=53

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 8.25.09: The Campus Kitchen at William and Mary kicked off the 2009 school year with their very first gleaning trip. Jessica Kim and Timmy Siverd, two members of the CKCWM leadership team, coordinated the  trip with William and Mary’s annual Students Helping Out Williamsburg (SHOW) Day. SHOW provided the CKCWM with 10 new student volunteers who were eager to lend a helping hand. Despite the farmers’ regrets that “there wasn’t much left to be picked”, the students managed to glean a total of 550lbs of fresh produce from 3 local farms!  Helen Kidder, a local master gardener and long-time community partner of CKCWM, was instrumental in this gleaning trip. She volunteered her bright blue van for produce transportation, without which, none of this would have been possible. The students packed it full of large, juicy watermelons and heaping bags of tomatoes. By the end of the day, the kitchen obtained 300lbs of tomatoes from KelRae Farms and Allens Farm as well as 50lbs of potatoes and 200lbs of watermelons from Hidden Brook Farm. After all of the produce was collected and sorted, CKCWM had more food than they knew what to do with! They had never had to store so much fresh produce before, so they generously donated to the WM dining services and a local food pantry, and the rest went towards their weekly meal deliveries. All in all, they ended up with 50lbs of watermelon and 200lbs of tomatoes. The rest of the produce (100lbs tomatoes, 50lbs potatoes, and 150lbs watermelon) went to DC Central Kitchen for daily meal production of over 4,000 meals.

New student volunteer at KelRae Farm

 It looks like this gleaning trip will be the first of many for CKCWM. KelRae Farms was so excited to have the students out on the farm, making use of seconds (that would normally be left in the fields to turn into compost), that they invited them back for another round of gleaning this fall.

To read more about SHOW, go to: http://www.wm.edu/news/stories/2009/220-wm-students-help-out-williamsburg-123.php 

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Awards to promote social justice

The Presbyterian Committee on the Self-Development of People

The mission of Presbyterian Committee on the Self-Development of People (SDOP) is to empower poor, oppressed and disadvantaged people who are seeking to change the structures that perpetuate poverty, oppression and injustice.  SDOP is taking applications year round for partnerships where a project is owned and controlled by the group of people who will benefit directly from it. Projects should address long-term correction of conditions that keep people bound by poverty and oppression

Awards Connect Gardening and Hunger Issues
National Gardening Association: Healthy Sprouts Awards
The mission of the National Gardening Association (NGA) is to promote home, school, and community gardening as a means to renew and sustain the essential connections between people, plants, and the environment. The NGA Healthy Sprouts Awards support school garden programs throughout the country that use the garden to teach youth about nutrition and the issue of hunger in the United States. Winning programs will receive $200 or $500 gift certificates from Gardener’s Supply Company, seed packets, and literature from NGA. Applicants must plan to garden in 2010 with at least 15 children between the ages of 3 and 18 years. The application deadline is October 17, 2009. Application guidelines and forms are available on the NGA website.

Awards to make a difference

Pay It Forward Foundation

The Pay It Forward Foundation was established to educate and inspire students to realize that they can change the world, and provide them with opportunities to do so. Students, teachers, and community partners are encouraged to formulate their own ideas of how they can pay it forward.  Pay It Forward mini-grants of up to $500 are designing to fund one-time only service-oriented projected identified by youth as activities they would like to perform to benefit their school, neighborhood, or greater community.  Projects must contain a “pay it forward” focus – that is, they must be based on the concept of one person doing a favor for others, who in term do favors for others, with the results growing exponentially – to be considered in the grant-making process. Applications are due for consideration September 15^th for October 1^st funding, and also February 15 for March 1^st funding.

Awards for Youth-Led Service-Learning Projects addressing Childhood Obesity

UnitedHealth HEROES grant sponsored by Youth Service America and UnitedHealth

Educators, service-learning coordinators, students in the health professions, public health professionals, and community partners are eligible to apply for the UnitedHealth HEROES service-learning project grants. Grant recipients will receive up to $1,000 in support for service-learning projects that focus on childhood obesity, engage youth ages 5-25 in the planning and implementation process, and take place during Semester of Service 2010 (MLK Day, January 18, to Global Youth Service Day, April 23-25).

States eligible for this year’s UnitedHealth HEROES program include:

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin.

Awards to support nonprofits doing good in their community

Tom’s of Maine

Tom’s of Maine wants to support nonprofit organizations working to do good in their community.  They are taking submissions until August 30th, and five nonprofits will be selected to receive $20,000 for their projects. Applications should support community involvement projects from nonprofit organizations.

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$52 million of those cuts are coming from Human Support Services and Other Low-Income Programs.  To put this in prospective, the next largest cut is for Public Education at $17 million. 

I urge all of you to visit the Save Our Saftey Net website, look through the information, and sign the petition to urge the City Council to reconsider their budget cuts.  The hungry and homeless shouldn’t face the brunt of the economic burden for the rest of the District.

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