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| Celebrating Our Community
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| Summer Celebration
Every summer, we experience with renewed amazement all of the collaborations that make CFI programming possible. This year as we head into our busy harvesting and gardening season in the midst of a pandemic, we're experiencing the strength of our partnerships and of this community even moreso! Our team has been sharing some awesome photos of all the things that are happening, so hopefully you've had a chance to see them on social media.
What a critical time for everything we do at CFI! We are witnessing a considerable increase in the need for gardens, access to fresh, healthy food, and support for our local economy. Simultaneously, we are witnessing increased community interest, support, and innovation. How inspiring! All of this deserves a conversation, so please talk with us in the gardens and at market, or reach out by email.
In this newsletter, we want to give a HUGE shoutout to some of our truly outstanding community champions. Community involvement is what makes everything possible. The folks we feature here are our "Golden Trowel" champions -- people who went above and beyond over the past year to support local food and gardens in many different ways. The dedication and smiling faces of these folks keep the CFI ecosystem strong.
Joy and gratitude,
The CFI Team
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| Golden Trowel Champions, 2020
Kari Boyle, CFI Supporter of the Year (below, left)
We are enormously grateful that we get to partner with Kari on so many projects!
From her tireless support and awesome contributions at the Nelsonville Community Garden, to her energy and guidance in making the Veggie Van dream a reality, her superhuman organizing and coordinating skills are not only a huge benefit for CFI but for the entire Athens County community. Thank you, Kari!
Badger Johnson, Workshop Warrior of the Year (below, center)
Badger uses his extensive knowledge to plan many of CFI’s community workshops. Since his service as a COMCorps member with CFI, he’s continued outside of his service to be a leader in his community and embolden his knowledge of the natural world. Thank you, Badger, for all you've done for this community!
Heidi Shaw, School Garden Champion of the Year (below, right)
From Heidi's support for our new Sprouts school garden programming to her management of the Athens City Schools District Healthy Schools Committee, she helps CFI staff and COMCorps members daily, and does so with a huge smile on her face. Thank you, Heidi, for all you do!
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| Dan Trolli, Student Volunteer of the Year (below, left)
Dan joined the CFI team as a Donation Station Intern during spring semester, 2020. During his internship he helped with any and all Donation Station work, and never failed to impress us with his connections, ideas, and superhero promptness. Dan came to Athens from Cleveland, and finished his degree in Public Health this past semester. We love knowing that Dan will continue to volunteer with CFI as long as he can!
Ivan Orquera, Student Volunteer of the Year (below, center)
Ivan has been an amazing volunteer with CFI for about a year, now, and logged 125 hours in 2019 helping at market, at the CPA, with distribution, and at Discovery Kitchen workshops. He even applied his passion for equitable access to healthy food to his academic career, incorporating CFI work in various research projects. Always eager and willing to help out with a smile, we were excited and grateful when Ivan agreed to join CFI staff as our Veggie Van Coordinator. Maybe we can hang a golden trowel from the rear view mirror of the Veggie Van. :)
Robin Blair-Ackison, Discovery Kitchen Champion (below, right)
We have sometimes wondered if Robin Blair is superhuman, magically making enough hours in the day to be 200% present and engaged in all of her many, many roles. She is a community pillar and beacon of light. Robin just completed her Masters of Public Health, during which she provided tireless support for CFI Discovery Kitchen programming through her practicum experience, generously sharing her culinary and nutritional expertise in addition to delicious foods and recipes. We hope she plans to stay in Athens forever, but know that she will continue to share her gifts wherever she goes. Thank you, Robin, for all you’ve done for CFI and for the Athens community!
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| Dan Kneier, Outstanding Knowledge and (K)nourishment (below, left)
Dan has been a major supporter of CFI through leading awesome garden workshops, growing gorgeous plants to be distributed to the community, and also sharing beautiful, delicious produce with Donation Station. We are so grateful for Dan and that he contributes so much while also filling many other roles, including (but not limited to!) being a father, instructor, Farm Manager, and all around great guy. Thank you, Dan, for all you’ve done for CFI and for the Athens community!
Ana Leon, Student Volunteer of the Year (below, center)
Ana has been helping out at the East-West Elementary school garden for 2 years now and the kids love it when she walks in the room. Her happiness and enthusiasm are contagious and we are grateful to have her hard-working hands helping out with our Sprouts school garden programming. Also a long-time Donation Station volunteer, we're so fortunate to have Ana in the CFI community!
Sara Jablonski, Student Volunteer of the Year (below, right)
Sara helped with the development of Sprouts school garden curriculum and worked with students in their classroom doing fun garden-related activities. The kids were always really excited when they saw Sara coming in and often bickered about who got to sit on her lap! Thank you, Sara! We loved having you on the CFI team for a semester!
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| Kim and Larry Cowdery, Cowdery Farms, Farm of the Year (below, left)
In 2019, Cowdery Farms donated 3542.5 pounds of produce from their farm to Donation Station. Such generous donations help us work toward ensuring that *everyone* has access to the incredibly gorgeous and delicious produce that’s available from our local farmers. Thank you, Larry and Kim, for all you’ve done for CFI and for the Athens community!
Samantha Dulaney, School Garden Volunteer of the Year (below, right)
Sam’s dedication to the Sprouts program was essential to its success. She truly cultivated a space of kindness and exploration! We appreciate her work connecting people and children with the places their food is coming from. Teaching children these skills early is immensely important to achieving food justice for the future. Thank you, Sam, for all you’ve done for CFI and for the Athens community!
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| What Else?
Tons! Bushels! Pecks! Crates! Truckloads! We're movin' and shakin' and shovelin'. Stay in touch and see our beautiful photos on social media. You'll see why we're so gaga for gardens and local food: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram.
Take care and stay safe, friends!
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