Community Sharing Ideas!
Here's a way to help local farmers help food banks. Members of Cedars Unitarian Universalist Church are funding a local grower to provide fresh local food to an area food bank. Specifically, Cedars members contributed over $500 in their special Sunday Service collection last month, and have applied those dollars to purchase a farm share at Butler Green Farms (on Lovgren Road on Bainbridge) in the name of Helpline House. Cedars volunteers then take turns picking up farm produce and delivering it weekly to the Helpline food bank in Winslow. A farm share (sometimes known as Community Supported Agriculture, or a CSA) provides an up-front cash payment to a local grower, who then "runs a tab" for cashless purchases of farm-fresh food.
Each month, Cedars devotes its collection-plate offerings on the last Sunday of the month, to a worthy organization. Cedars has also embarked on a perpetual food drive -- setting out a box each Sunday for church members to drop off food donations for Helpline on Bainbridge, and for the Fishline food bank in North Kitsap. Demand at area food banks has sharply risen as food prices have dramatically increased in recent months.
If your faith group, school, or organization has any great ideas they would like to share, contact info@sustainablebainbridge.net.