Celebrating Our Community!
Greetings and Happy End Of 2020!
Ever think you’d get an email wanting to celebrate 2020, the year of…well…not so much fun?
The Butte County Local Food Network has had a great year amidst the Crazies! It was the year we came out full speed in our efforts to create a stronger local food system. And we had a blast accomplishing lots with you!
What has our Community Network done this year?
We shared over 2000 seed packets in Tiny Libraries throughout the county
We connected local farmers with folks who need healthy food by bringing over 17 tons of locally grown food to Concow.
We installed 103 raised bed gardens in Chico, Gridley and the Burn Scar communities (watch out, Oroville, you’re next).
We helped start a group from all sectors (farming, policy, education, agencies, etc) that is working together on a Local Food Assessment to create a county wide plan on ways to work together to create a stronger local food system
We started and grew an amazing, budding semi-public Community Garden and Permaculture Food Forest called Vecino Victory Garden and Neighborhood Composting Center
We started a YouTube channel to share the good news about all things local food
We held 5 online workshops in our Creating Food Independence series
We ended the year by getting a grant from the county to get a Farmers Marketmobile which will launch in early January, starting with service to Magalia and Concow, then reaching out into other areas.
All that and we’ve only just started!
Our hopes and dreams for 2021? Simple:
Expand and ground all the projects we laid in place this year. Watch for more seeds, more gardens, more opportunities to create a community that grows food together.
Expand and ground stuff we’ve been working on that hasn’t been public….yet-
Gleaning project
A project to increase personal and community composting
Creating a gardening mentoring program that also supports young farmers and growers as consultants
Art- this C-Bug has definitely slowed down opportunities to connect in person. We have always held a vision of celebrating the union of the art of gardening with creative visual art. We’ll get there.
A restaurant program that honors chefs who serve us food grown by local farmers
Pretty cool, yes? We call ourselves a group of folks wanting to create a community that grows food together. We believe we CAN do all this and more, exponentially, with more community.
So this is our plea: Please join us.
First off, we need YOU! Your brain, your body, your heart your willingness to do the joyous work of Foodie community building!
We know folks are scared. We know that many have been depressed, isolated, etc.
We can find ways of connecting online and safely, outdoors with masks and distance.
Connection is what makes us human. If you don’t feel safe being around people there are tons of ways you can connect with us in the safety of your home that will make us all stronger. Please hear this: The best way to feel better emotionally is to help others, to get out of our shells and be there for each other. It’s truly magic, backed up by science.
So please, for your sake, for all our sake: connect more. Reach out more, do more for others, wherever your most heart-connected topic of need is.
If you care about food, please contact us and we’ll find a way for you to join us that suits you, as there are tons of ways to be involved– from Garden Big Sister or Brother, to seed collator and disburser, to cook, videographer/interviewer, compost turner, social media maven, weeder, garden installer, lawyer, date inputter, etc. It takes a universe to do this. It’s a Circle Of Life sorta thingie: You join the community then feel part of a community while simultaneously creating more connection and community and that spiral of love just keeps giving and giving.
Secondly- we need financial help to make all this happen . We have been a volunteer organization and it’s really hard to keep these kinds of projects going with only folks who have limited bandwidth to do them after working an 8 hour day of other work to pay the bills. Why not change our values and support folks doing the work of community building and growing food, right here?
We have heard that due to COVID and all the need out there, that tax laws in regards to donations are a bit different this year. Did you know you can take an additional tax deduction in 2020 of up to $300 for your 2020 charitable donations if you take a standard deduction? If you itemize, you can deduct 2020 charitable donations up to 100% of their adjusted gross income, which is normally 60%. You can donate to a targeted program or general donation to the BCLFN here.
A new exciting way to help the community is by adopting a family as a “Marketmobile Angel” by donating money for a gift card that gets them healthy food and ensures the new Marketmobile will thrive. We’ll be sharing more about that program as we have the ability to ground and solidify it, but if you’d like to get started asap, please reply to this email or check off the targeted Marketmobile Angel donation here and we’ll get your donation to a family that could really use the help in these uncertain times.
Keep the light and faith during these coming months. We believe that the need for more locally grown foods will continue to increase this year. We have time now to lay the groundwork for a truly connected Network that comes together and addresses our long term food security while ensuring all in our community have healthy food to keep their bodies and minds strong today.
Thanks to YOU, North Valley Community Foundation, Butte Strong Fund, KIXE, Tzu Chi US, From the Ground UP, BEC, 350 Butte County, Paradise Community Guilds, our wonderful farmers, the Chico Certified Farmers Market and all our partners and supporters for being part of the Butte County Local Food Network! Let’s make 2021 a year that makes our community even stronger and more united! We CAN do this!
Onward!
Pamm, Donna, Toni, Ali, Amy, Jarrett, Richard and Dan, the Board of the BCLFN
