Thanks to the generosity of donors, our Fresh and Healthy Food for All initiative recently awarded $30,100 to six organizations for projects that provide access to fresh and healthy food for Columbia County residents, especially households with limited resources.
Fresh and Healthy Food for All is designed to transform the food system over time for the benefit of all residents. We have engaged a wide-ranging group of partners in all aspects of the food economy to help create a more equitable food system in Columbia County.
This initiative is the result of two anonymous philanthropists who believe that “access to healthy food should be a right, not a privilege.” Inspired by this mission, a group of donors came together to support the projects listed in our most recent grant cycle.
Sky High Farm: $5,000 to support the purchasing budget for a snow plow and snow tires. This new equipment provides the ability access different sites on the farm during the winter months, and provides additional transportation to support farm functions. This increased operational capacity will better serve the community by suppling more fresh food during the challenging winter months, and ensure the safety of farmers and staff when roads are wet and icy.
Taconic Hills Central School District: $5,100 for the Backpack Buddies and Beyond program, which provides food-insecure students with food through the weekend and on school breaks. Students bring home a backpack filled with food products the day of a break and return the backpack to be re-filled the next week. BBB currently supports elementary and high school students. This grant will be used to purchase a refrigerator and freezer for the storage of perishable food items prior to distribution.
Rock Steady Farm & Flowers: $5,000 for the Rock Steady Farm and Ancramdale Neighbors Helping Neighbors Fresh Food Distribution Program, which will provide full CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) shares free of cost to sixteen families in Columbia County all season via ANHNA’s weekly mobile delivery program to underserved, low-income families, that include immigrant families as well as families that have a parent or family member who is incarcerated.
Taghkanic Free Fridge/The Purpose Coworking Inc., fiscal sponsor: $5,000 to add more days of grocery shopping to the community and increase the amount of food that can be stocked in the pantry.
Long Table Harvest/ Social and Environmental Entrepreneurs (SEE), fiscal sponsor: $5,000 for The Gleaning Program to support low-income residents in Columbia County towns, including Germantown, Greenport, Hudson, Craryville, Hillsdale, Copake, Philmont, Chatham, and Ghent. Harvested fruits, vegetables, dairy, and meat from over 30 local farms are picked up two days a week and distributed.
Columbia County Recovery Kitchen: $5,000 for program support in Columbia County. CCRK provides nutritious, often locally sourced meals prepared by professional chefs to 750 residents of Columbia County who are food insecure due to unemployment, underemployment, disability or other social and economic factors. Meals are provided 5 days per week totaling more than 1,200 meals weekly and are delivered directly to recipients’ homes.
Columbia County Sanctuary Movement: $5,000 to increase the amount of locally grown organic food the organization distributes to residents.
Field & Fork Network: $5,000 to support the Double Up Food Bucks program at the Rolling Grocer 19 store in Hudson, which matches SNAP purchases to increase the accessibility and affordability of fresh fruits and vegetables for residents with low incomes.
Friends of Clermont: $2,300 to grow, harvest and donate vegetables, fruits and herbs to members of the community surrounding the Clermont State Historic Site.
Long Table Harvest: $5,000 to support a gleaning program that delivers unused or unsaleable vegetables, fruit, meat and dairy directly to food pantries, community organizations and youth programs.
New Lebanon Farmers Market: $4,500 to place a community refrigerator in front of a New Lebanon café and stock it with free fruits, vegetables and dairy products for residents who need them.
Grow in Harmony Community Garden: $5,200 to expand the growing space of a community garden and provide more fruits and vegetables for local food pantries and community organizations.
ReEntry Columbia: $5,000 to host weekly Warm Night suppers, distribute farm-fresh items and provide educational nutrition programs for people who have been involved with the criminal justice system.
Rock Steady Farm: $5,000 to continue its partnership with the Ancramdale Neighbors Helping Neighbors Association to provide weekly deliveries of fresh and healthy food to families in need.
Sky High Farm: $5,000 to increase poultry production and donate chickens and eggs to food pantries and community organizations operating in Columbia and northeast Dutchess counties.
The Sylvia Center: $5,000 to pair classes with fresh food kits to help young people and their families understand the connection between food and health while empowering participants to learn new skills and cook a healthy, low-cost meal.
Questions about FHFFA? Please email Emily Bronson, Senior Community Engagement Officer for Initiatives & Special Projects.
