Food Access &Affordability Program

AARP Foundation Fresh Savings

• AARP Foundation’s Fresh Savings project is a healthy eating incentive program funded by a grant from the
United States Department of Agriculture and United Health Care. Fresh Savings is available at five farmers
markets, The Grocer, and fourteen Kroger's in the City of Memphis and will double a shopper’s SNAP/EBT
purchases up to $20 on fresh fruits and vegetables.

Participating Fresh Savings Farmers Market

 2018 YTD Total Fresh Savings Transactions
at Memphis Area Farmers Markets by Month
Key
CYCFM CHC MFM OPCFM STJFM SMFM
CYCFM – Cooper Young
Distributed Redeemed
(D) (R) D R D R D R D R D R Community Farmers Market
July 595 523 0 0 646 577 384 249 0 12 299 310
CHC – Church Health Center
August 339 487 0 0 10 13 275 62 0 0 561 619
September 387 292 NA NA 525 712 476 508 0 0 86 48 MFM – Memphis Farmers
October 338 375 NA NA 231 213 347 448 0 0 0 0 Market
November 247 244 NA NA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
OPCFM – Overton Park
December 310 268 NA NA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Community Farmers Market
January 120 77 NA NA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
February 110 86 NA NA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 STJFM – St. Jude Farmers
March 192 176 NA NA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Market
April 125 131 NA NA 185 207 530 504 0 0 0 0
SMFM – South Memphis
May 226 204 NA NA 187 116 554 527 0 0 0 0 Farmers Market
June 290 270 NA NA 491 454 304 396 0 0 20 32
The Grocer at South
Totals 3279 3133 0 0 2275 2292 2870 2694 0 12 966 1009 Memphis Farmers Market

Total Distributed: $11,307

Total Redeemed: $10,789
Redemption Rate: 95.42%
 2018 YTD Total Fresh Savings Transactions at
Memphis Area Farmers Markets
3500

3000

2500

Total Distributed: $11,307

2000
Total Redeemed: $10,789
Total Dist.
Redemption Rate: 95.42% Total Red.
1500

1000

500

0
CYCFM MFM OPCFM STJFM SMFM Grocer CHC
Food Access &Affordability Program
Fresh Savings Rx (pilot)
• Not only is it important to have a diet that includes more fresh fruits and vegetables, but such a diet can also
improve your health, which is critical for people over 50. With Fresh Savings Rx, eligible participants that receive
SNAP and are at risk of a diet related disease are eligible to get a prescription for fresh produce and receive up to
six $10 vouchers to redeem for fresh fruits and vegetables at select Kroger stores and farmers markets. These
vouchers can be obtained at Regional One Health and Church Health and redeemed at nearby participating
outlets. Fresh Savings Rx is a pilot program and is only available through select healthcare providers in Tennessee
and Mississippi.

• Memphis Tilth is a sub contractor of Wholesome Wave Foundation Charitable Ventures, Inc. through the AARP
Foundation Kresge Grant in the Memphis, Tennessee area, supporting activities at farmers markets as well as the
Fresh Savings Rx program.
 2018 Fresh Savings Rx Vouchers
at Memphis Area Farmers Markets by Month
Key
CYCFM The MFM OPCFM SMFM STJFM
CYCFM – Cooper Young
Community Farmers Market Grocer
MFM – Memphis Farmers Market March 0 40 0 0 0 NA
OPCFM – Overton Park April 0 66 6 0 0
Community Farmers Market
May 0 59 1 0 1
STJFM – St. Jude Farmers Market
*Did not participate in the Rx June 13 45 17 0 2
pilot program

SMFM – South Memphis Farmers

Market Total 13 210 24 0 3 NA Total Vouchers
The Grocer at South Memphis
Redeemed=
Farmers Market 250 vouchers

With each voucher valuing $10, that means that $2,500.00 was
redeemed on fresh fresh fruits and vegetables!
Alpha Omega Veterans Urban Farm
• Collaborative project between Alpha Omega Veterans
Services (AOVS) began February 2018
• Core Values of Alpha Omega Veterans Services
• Assist military veterans to reintegrate into society
• Facilitate the rehabilitation and recovery of military
veterans from debilitating mental and physical
conditions
• Provide or secure housing or healthy independent
living situations for military veterans
• Develop an Urban Farm with:
• Market Garden Project Goals:
• Wellness Garden • Educate AOVS clients with the garden functioning as a learning tool
• Raised Beds • Rehabilitation and therapy for clients in evidence-based garden and grounds design
• Greenhouse • Distribute farm produce within the Alpha Omega organization to be consumed by
• Chicken Coop residents and sold outside of the organization for profit
• Bee hives • Supplement residents’ fruit and vegetable intake
• Composting systems • Initiate a food-based enterprise, resulting in a value-added product for resident to
grow, process, and sell
• Develop of aesthetics and propagation for the regenerative sustainability of the
environment
Farm Development

6 Raised Beds (4x8)

53 Permanent In Ground Beds (30” x 50’)
 Early Harvests
Harvest (by pound) Produce distribution
30

25
24.17 1%
3%1%
19.2
20

15 12
10 8.13 8.68 28%
7.38 6.92
4.12
5 2.47
0.71 1.28 1.08
0.01
0
1
62%
Radish (French Breakfast): 12lbs Radish (Easter Egg): 19.2lbs
2%
Kale: 7.38lbs Chard: 6.92lbs 3%
Turnip Greens: 4.12lbs Head Lettuce: 2.47lbs (10 heads)
Salad Mix (Salanova): 24.17lbs Chamomile: .01lb
Basil: .71lb Beets: 8.13lb
SRO/Ball Road: 143.64 Vinton: 6.75lbs Central: 4lbs
Turnip (roots): 1.28 Chives: 1.08
Court: 65.53 Madison: 8lbs Bring It Food Hub: 1.5lbs
Sweet Potato Greens: 8.68
Staff

February – June 2018:

102.95 lbs harvested
• Total Value: $544.50
Sustainability

Two bee hives on site at the

farm 156lbs of food waste composted
• 195lbs of carbon pollution sequestered
"It makes you feel like ... you're doing
something right. You're doing
something good. And this really is my
family. This is the family that I have.
The people here in this garden, the
staff. Here you belong. Here I belong.
This is the place that I belong. I haven’t
had a place to belong since I was a kid.
Since I was 17 years old and left home
and went into the military, I’ve kind of
been out there in the wind ever since.
This is kind of a return. It's kind of a
turnaround....This right here it educates
people about eating, and it gives
people food to eat… I guess I just feel
that’s what I want to do the rest of my
life. Something good, man.”
-- Ed Carlock, AOVS resident
AOVS Urban Farm Pop Up Free Market
2226 Ball Rd Market
• May attendance: 29 residents
• June attendance: 33 residents
• Once a month Community Kitchen snack provided

Market Impact
• Provide residents with immediate access to fresh produce
o Over 200lbs of produce distributed Residents Jessie Jenkins, Tim Dunn, and Sylvester
Flowers enjoy a healthy snack prepared with the
• Promote AOVS Community Co-op class series day’s harvest
• Distribute Bring It Food Hub food recovery

Community
Garden
AOVS
Organizer Becca
resident
Hart distributes
Ricky
produce from
Mitchell
the AOVS Urban
holds up his
Farm and Bring
share of
It Food Hub food
radishes and
recovery
kale
AOVS Urban Farm Community Co-op Class
Intro to Food Systems Community Garden Curriculum:
6 week class series offered to Alpha Omega veterans to learn • Natural farming methods
about dynamic food skills from the ground to the kitchen. The • Garden bed prep & soil types
curriculum accommodates resident interests and personal • Seeding & transplanting
experiences while promoting a broader community food • Battling weeds & pests
culture within the organization. • Therapeutic horticulture
• Composting
Class sites:
• Ball Rd. Community Kitchen Curriculum:
• Court Ave. • Offers hands-on training in food skills from
• Vinton Ave. developing recipes to cooking for others
• Madison Ave. • Cultivates healthy eating alternatives and
strategies
• Uses a public humanities framework to
combine the history of food, struggle and
Community Garden Organizer Becca Hart social justice
teaches a class about fruit tree care during
Intro to Food Systems
AOVS Urban Farm Community Co-op Class

Dynamic
food skills
from the
ground to
the skillet

Community Kitchen Coordinator Faron Levesque leads a class discussion

AOVS Community Co-op class harvests sweet potato

greens for fellow veterans.
AOVS Urban Farm Community Engagement
Paid employees Volunteers
• Ed Carlock, 20 hours per week • Alpha Omega Resident Volunteers: 18
• Community Volunteers: 10
Engagement • Total: 28 volunteers
• Ball Rd. Community Supper
• St. Jude Farmers Market Kick Off Hours
• Pop Up Free Market (Ball Rd. & Court Ave.) • Alpha Omega Resident Volunteer Hours: 100.5
• AOVS Community Co-op class • Community Volunteer Hours: 26.5
• Total: 127 hours

Residents Ed Carlock and Doug Havlick build shelves Volunteers admire the chicken coop on the farm
AOVS Urban Farm Community Suppers
• Utilize locally-sourced, healthy ingredients
• Create a space for student-interests, food
experience, and individual health challenges
to be documented through surveys and one-
on-one interactions
• Stir interest in the upcoming class series
• Enlist current student-residents in the
planning, preparation, and sharing of the
meal
• Site-specific to directly engage residents and
address each facility’s needs and interests

Ball Rd. Supper- 25 attendants

Residents at Ball Rd. enjoy a farm meal with the AOVS Urban farm team and AOVS staff
St. Jude Garden

Volunteers Mitra Varedi & Samah Hayek plant

pepper starts.

Garden Associate Sarah

Taylor works new soil
with a broadfork.
A volunteer group from UTHSC weeds a row of
beans.
Highlights
- Harvested 4,612 pounds of
produce
- Planted 51 new trees
- Worked with 14 individual
volunteers and 19 groups
- Volunteers worked a total of
1,041 hours
Garden associate Deval Del Conte harvests sweet potatoes.
- Passed an audit and became
GAP certified
- Welcomed 1000+ St. Jude Harvesting colorful carrots.
attendees into the garden
for the Spring Farmers
Market Kick-Off

Garden associates Devan del Conte & Sarah

Taylor make bouquets for market.
Agrictecture Workshop
- Hosted by St. Jude, led by the
agricultural design firm,
Agritecture
- 2-day workshop discussing
hydroponics and other urban
agricultural operations and their
application to St. Jude’s campus
- 3 Agrictecture employees led 3 Kevin Krueger, Jennifer Marshall and other St. Jude
Mary Carnes Agrictecture’s Henry Gordon- representatives discuss hydroponic production with a member
groups of attendees to discuss Smithpresent on their group’s ideas for of the Agritecture team.
ways to incorporate growing expansions to the St. Jude Garden.

spaces on campus, from

greenhouse production of
strawberries to miniature
hydroponic gardens spread
throughout campus buildings.

A St. Jude architect sketches out a future

imagining of the garden.
Harvests
2016 vs. 2017 Harvest Amounts (lbs)
800
- July to December 2017 : 3381 pounds
700
- January to June 2018 : 1230.5 pounds
600
- Fiscal year total: 4612 pounds 500
- Surpassed our estimations for FY18 by 2,482 pounds 400
- August to December 2016: 538 pounds harvested 300
- August to December 2017: 2055 pounds harvested 200
100
0
August September October November December

2016 2017

Volunteer Yizhen Li helps harvest fingerling potatoes.

St. Jude Farmers Market

- Weekly on Fridays from 7:30 am-

12:30 pm
- Ended in November 2017 and
began again in April 2018
- Average number of vendors per
week increased from 10 in 2017 to
The garden’s new cargo bike for produce
14 in 2018 transport.
- April 20 : Farmers Market Kick-Off
brought in 24 vendors and 1000+
attendees from the St. Jude campus

- July to November sales total: $3,400 Jennifer Marshall sets up the garden table at
market.
- April to June sales total: $1,565
- Total FY18 sales total : $4,965

Fall root crops at the market.

Volunteers

- 20 individual volunteers (SJ employees

& community members)
-585 individual volunteer hours
-19 Volunteer groups
-463.5 Group volunteer hours
-Total volunteer hours July to December:
A volunteer group from Vanderbilt worked in the
469 garden for 2 days during their Spring Break.
-Total volunteer hours January to June:
580
-Total Fiscal Year hours: 1,049
Volunteer Shannon Fuller helps make a
delivery of garden produce to the Kay Kafe.

Volunteers Yousef Czapary and Josh Colfer

trellis tomatoes.
Patient/Family Involvement

- June 2018 Summer Camp day: 13 patients

came to the garden for a tour and garden-
themed craft.

- Every Tuesday: Open Garden Hours 8:30

am - 3:30 pm. Patients and Families are
invited to spend time in the garden.

Crafts were made using flower petals

and leaves from the garden.

Patients make mandala crafts under the garden awning.

Garden Expansion
-We aim for the garden to be more central
to St. Jude campus life, accessible and
enjoyable to staff and families alike.
-Began preparations to fill out the garden
space more and to make it more functional
and inviting. Native coral honeysuckle grows on the
-Conducted soil testing across the garden; garden’s west-facing fence.

received approval to plant crops in-ground.

-Set up a 100 foot long tunnel for seed-
starting and season-extension growing.
-St. Jude carpenters began construction of a
small playhouse, that will serve functional as We put up the caterpillar tunnel in December 2017 and
well as recreational purposes. began using it in Spring 2018 as a greenhouse for seed-
starting and a site for in-ground growing.
-In Fall 2017: Planted 39 new trees & 40+
perennial flowers and grasses
-In Spring 2018: Planted 11 fruit trees and
800+ perennial plants

Garden associate Sarah Taylor plants a

Serviceberry tree.
Beekeeping
-Original hive was maintained over
winter and in spring began
expanding rapidly; 1 hive turned
into 3!
-Memphis Tilth purchased an
additional hive in April 2018; there
are currently 4 healthy colonies
Devan Del Conte & Jennifer Marshall prepare
working and producing honey. to inspect the hives.
-One St. Jude employee
volunteers his time to mentor the
garden team in beekeeping.
Mary Carnes fills feeders with syrup.

Mentor Eric Caron inspects hives with Mary Carnes.

Butterfly & Hummingbird Garden
-2017: over 70 butterflies of 4
different species were released
into the garden
-2017: 7 different species of
butterflies and Ruby Throated
hummingbirds were sighted in
the garden by St. Jude
employees. Dr. James Downing, CEO of St. Jude, asks questions
during the first butterfly release in 2017. Sphinx Moth found in
-2018: Over 400 plants planted the B&H Garden
in the B&H Garden in spring,
including Mallows, Passion
Flower Vine, and Bronze
Fennel

Mallow ‘Zebrina’ flower

blooming in B&H Garden is
Gulf Fritillary and Black Swallowtail Butterflies a host plant for Painted
being released into the Butterfly Garden. Lady Butterflies
Butterfly & Hummingbird
Garden
-A path of 10 pollinator
stations are being set up
from the Butterfly &
Hummingbird Garden on
the main campus to the A Gulf Fritillary Butterfly in
Ashley Atkins uses the St. Jude Garden bike to transport
main St. Jude Garden. the Butterfly Garden.
supplies for the Pollinator stations across campus.

-Three were completed

from June to November
2017.

-Two more stations were

added in spring 2018.

A pollinator station, newly The same station in full

planted in summer 2017. bloom, summer 2018.
Bring It Food Hub
Bring It Food Hub’s mission is to promote community development in Memphis and the Mid-South by increasing access to healthy,
affordable local foods and strengthening farmer livelihoods. We work closely with regional farmers who follows sustainable production
practices that conserve natural resources and biodiversity. We sell local fruit, vegetables, eggs and value added products to individuals,
congregations, restaurants and institutions in Memphis.
• Aggregate distributor of local produce currently sourced from 17 specialty crop growers within a 150 mile radius of Memphis.
• Distribution channels: wholesale (restaurants, nonprofits, large institutions) and direct-to-consumer (subscription service).

Impact
1. Promote community development through 765 subscriptions delivered throughout 75 zip codes, serving 706
households within these zip codes.
2. Strengthening farmer livelihoods by purchasing and selling $137,483.26 dollars of local food.
3. Increase access to local affordable foods by offering 81 amount of Pay It Forward bags to Memphis Tilth Community
Garden and Kitchen Elective students.
4. Recovered 744.69 pounds of food, diverted from landfills and distributed to food insecure Memphians, to compost,
to feed our community gardens.
5. Served the Overton Park Community Farmers Market FMPP by delivering 163 produce bags to SNAP customers.
Bring It Food Hub Subscription Impact Data
• 765 produce bags packed and delivered
• 613 add-on products* packed and delivered
• 28 meat shares packed and delivered

Total local food products delivered: 1406

Total Sales: $137,483.26
Total Wholesale Sales: $11,618.59
Serving local hospitals, universities,
churches, and farmers markets

*Add-ons include coffee, eggs, bread, cheese, and

flowers
Bring It Food Hub Producers

The produce and products in the Bring It Food Hub subscription bags were sourced from the following:

• 17 Local Farms
• 1 Local Produce Cooperative
- New South Produce Cooperative
• Local Specialty Food Producers
- McKaskle Family Farm – Braggadocio, MO
- Bluff City Fungi – Memphis, TN
- Dr. Beans Coffee – Memphis, TN
• Animal Products
- Marmilu Farms - Jackson, TN
- Fraser Farms - Memphis, TN
- Kenny’s Farmhouse Cheese – Austin, KY
Bring It Food Hub Farmer Livelihoods
As a part of our mission, we believe in strengthening farmers' livelihoods by freeing up farmers to do what
they do best - farming.

• Currently working with 17 local farmers

• Total Sales Directly to farmers - $105,756.35

Marmilu Farms - 0ne of our local farmers we source from

Bring It Food Hub: Food Recovery Project
Food Security is “when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient safe and
nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.”
- United Nations’ Committee on World Food Security

Gleaning and donations

• Over 671 lbs. of food donated in bulk, value of $1342.58
• 81 Pay It Forward bags, value of $1,620
• Total estimated value of donated food is $2,962.58
• Recovered food delivered to: Perea Preschool,
Friends for Life, Advance Memphis, Alpha Omega
Veterans Services, Memphis Tilth’s Community
Garden and Kitchen Elective, and Grace St. Luke’s
Episcopal Church

Children from Perea Preschool enjoying produce from our Food Recovery Project
Bring It Food Hub: Food Recovery Project
Compost
“The global carbon footprint of all of this wasted food was about 3.3 billion tons of carbon-dioxide
equivalents — that’s 7 percent of all global emissions. To put that into perspective, this is more carbon
than most countries emit in a year.”
– The Washington Post, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

We composted 267.14 pounds of food, diverting food that otherwise

Would have gone to landfills, lowering our carbon footprint.
Special Crop Block Grant
The purpose of the Special Crop Block Grant is to enhance the opportunities for farmers to sell their
specialty crops to Bring It Food Hub who might otherwise not have the ability to do so. First, Bring It Food
Hub has scheduled a Saturday pick up at local farmers markets from farmers traveling from areas outside of
Memphis who might otherwise not have the ability to visit the area at any other time. As a result,
consumers are able to enjoy more specialty crops and farmers are able to expand their market,
strengthening their livelihoods.

The Specialty Crop Block Grant started on November 1, 2017 and extends through August 1, 2020 in the
amount of $22,500. The expenditures are divided as follows:

Contractual Staff (Advance Memphis) $7,245

Personnel (BIFH Saturday Staff) $8,840
Supplies (i.e. trailer) $5,674.75
Travel (produce transit cost) $740.25

Total $22,500
Partnership with Advance Memphis

Community Connection

• The Specialty Crop Block Grant has made it possible for the closer connection between Bring It Food
Hub and our community. Funding from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture grant has helped
improve the livelihoods of community members by providing employment at wages $11.50 per hour,
thus helping to catapult an end to impoverished environments and increase the likelihood of successful
community members.
• Through our partnership with Advance Memphis, we are able to offer employment through
their job placement center program.
Garden and Kitchen Elective
3 Elective Cycles Completed
• 34 Enrolled (more than doubled from Jan-June 2017)
• 19 Graduated and received certificates/gifts
• Knife, cutting board, colander, apron, chopsticks, and hand blender
• 2 Kitchen Leaders
• 3 community meals hosted
• 202 lbs. of produce was used in class
• 49 lbs. from St. Paul Garden
• 73 lbs. from Bring It Food Hub
• 18 dozens of eggs from Bring It Food Hub
• 34 kinds of produce were introduced
• 321 lbs. of produce were given to students
• Items from St. Paul Garden
• Pay It Forward Bags

2017 Class 6 Garden and Kitchen Elective graduates

Kitchen Leader
This position is for Garden and Kitchen elective graduates. The goal of this position
is to create an incentive for graduates to return to participate in the Kitchen and
Garden elective.
Purpose of the position:
• For graduates to continue learning skills around the kitchen
• To inspire and motivate the new Kitchen and Garden elective students to learn
• Be an advocate for vegetables and fruits to their communities
Tasks:
• Arrive a few minutes early to prep for the elective with the Community Kitchen
Coordinator (CKC)
• Have the 3 compartment sink ready for the class
• Remind students to sign in and wash hands
• Explain the drink of the day: ingredients, how to make it
• Help CKC clean-up after the class and learn how to be efficient in the kitchen
• Create, write and turn in 2 recipes
Recognition at the graduation:
• Certificate specific to Community Kitchen Leader
• They will receive special gifts: Non-stick pan and tongs
Kitchen Leader, Lakesha after a kitchen class. She is
washing dishes according to the ServSafe regulations
Students in the Kitchen
Learning:
• How to cook with fresh seasonal vegetables
• Kitchen safety
• Creating recipes together
• Utilizing produce from non-traditional gardens

Discussion topics include:

• Diabetes
• Sugar in drinks
Students making herbal “sweet” tea using stevia, a sweet tasting plant
• Nutrition/Balanced diet
• Food buying practices
• Fresh Savings program
• Nutrition labels

Discussion on sugar in drinks. Seeing is believing. Students picking ingredients from the hydroponics
People We Serve:
Garden and Kitchen Elective Students

Participants' Gender Participants' Age Range

20

18
18
16
Female, 21
14
45% Male,26

Number of Students
55% 12

10

8
8 8
6
Male Female

4
4
2 3

0
18-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60+
Age group
Community Meal
Garden and Kitchen Elective students prepare lunch for their fellow students,
guests and staff using skills they have learned and produce they have became
familiar with.

3 Meals were hosted

Total attendees: 126 Students taking charge and preparing for the meal

Menu from Class 6

Potato and leek soup

Green deviled eggs
Roasted sweet potatoes
Roasted Butternut Squash
Rainbow Chard and beet top quiche

Colorful meal is shared by the community

First Cookbook Published in
October
”Garden to Table Memphis!”
Healthy options made quick, easy & tasty

Featuring:
Garden and Kitchen students
Produce from St. Paul Garden (Jan - June) 4 pages from the cookbook
Recipes created by the students
Recipes used in the class
“Into 3!”
5 to 15 minutes per recipe

Information on:
Farmers markets
Fresh Savings
Seasonality of local produce
Cookbook made available at Advance Memphis and its students
outside of garden and kitchen elective

Front cover of the cookbook

Community Kitchen’s New Assets
Installed in September 2017
Vent-a-hood
Stove
Oven

Kelvin White sautéing kale Stove and Vent-a-hood

Memphis Tilth ServSafe Food Handler Course and
Exam
ServSafe Food Handler Course provides the important knowledge necessary for
working in the foodservice industry. The 3 sessions class is offered at Advance
Memphis classroom. The topics include: Basic Food Safety, Personal Hygiene, Time and
Temperature Control, Cross-contamination and Allergens, and Cleaning and Sanitizing.
Upon passing the exam, the participants will receive certificate from National
Restaurant Association.

Sherika Alston diligently taking notes ServSafe students taking the course
ServSafe Successes
3 Class Cycles Completed
• 15 Enrolled
• 8 Passed the exam

Rodrick Crawford landed a job in foodservice

industry. Because of his certification, this he is
training as a manager within couple of weeks.

Rodrick was enrolled in both ServSafe and Garden

and Kitchen Elective.

Rodrick in the kitchen Rodrick Crawford

Lester Community Center (38112)
Garden-to-table demonstration

Simple ways to add nutrition to every day foods

Discussion about healthy foods
Opportunity to ask garden and kitchen related questions
Recipe cards

11/17: 15 students
Pre-K through 5th grade students
Students are eager to ask questions
12/8: 30 students
Pre-K through high school age students

Students having hands on experiences

Outreach Events
Overton Park Community Farmers Market (38112)
7/6: 269 attended the market
10/19: 202 attended the market
Grizzlies Preparatory Charter School (38103)
Recruiting elective students
Families receiving the fresh produce
Targeting 200 people
Making ”exciting” salad using seasonal greens and fruits
that are available at the market
Peabody Elementary School (38104)
12/1: Career Day
Visited 3rd and 5th grade classes: 49 students and 5 adults
• Nonprofit career path
• Importance of healthy eating practice

Grizzlies Preparatory Charter School families taking fresh produce home Discussion on vegetables with the Peabody Elementary 3rd grades
Looking Ahead
• Garden and Kitchen Elective
• Continuing partnership with AARP

• ServSafe Course and Exam

• Partner with other organization to facilitate jobs in foodservice industry for students who passes the exam
• Making the course into an elective– more permanent Work Life position

• Partnership with community leaders in zip codes 38109, 38127, 38128, 38111, 38108
• Continuing partnership with Lester Community Center (38112)
• Garden and kitchen demonstration
• Reaching out to Pre-K – High School aged children
• Teaching children how to cook using produce from the garden

• Development and Publication of the second cookbook

• Overton Park Community Farmers Market

Brittany Myers from AARP talking to the class about the Fresh Savings Program
Project Diabetes Grant
Goals: St. Paul Garden and Community Kitchen
1. Increase Access to Healthy Food Options
2. Increase Awareness of Healthy Eating Practices
3. Increase Affordability of Healthy Food Options
4. Make Physical Activity an Integral and Routine Part of Life
• Provide and Support Community Programs Designed to
Increase Physical Activity
• Enhance the physical and built environment
Garden and Kitchen Elective Students

Focus on Zip Codes with a High Risk of Diabetes

• Memphis is the most obese large city in America (over 1 million people)
• Leading causes of death and disability: heart disease and stroke
• Project serves zip codes in 38126, 38104, 38107, and 38112
• Most of our Project Diabetes activity is located at the Memphis Tilth HQ in 38126,
where the median income is $13,667 and 74% of families live below the poverty line
• Significant barriers to access, purchase and consume healthy foods
o Lack of full-service grocery stores
o Lack of knowledge of healthy eating
o Lack of affordable and quality produce options
o Lack of basic kitchen equipment
St. Paul Garden (notes for slide creation)

Harvest count – pounds

Produce Distribution – in the field, in class
Composting – contributors (BIFH, Hollywood feed, Kitchen, Office); weight
Garden Evolution – added assets/new assets (new beds, shipping container with
roof, new growing space, two tower gardens, aquaponics?, perennial flower bed,
cut flowers, expanded compost, greenhouse)
Number of class cycles
Number of students
Number of volunteers and impact hours
New Tools (greenhouse)
preview (what’s been planted, started, garden plan?)
St. Paul Demonstration Garden

Summer, 2017 Fall, 2017

St. Paul Demonstration Garden, Production
Garden Elective students Claudia,
From July through December: Daniel, and Jaretta show off a
Harvested - # of produce radish harvest

Produced - X varieties of produce

Two of the Garden

Elective’s biggest
veggie eaters to-
date show off their
take home bags of
arugula.
 St. Paul Demonstration Garden, Engagement
Hosted 59 outside volunteers, 5 large groups, 4 interns, 26 students
Impact hours: 483.5

Pic of Noah

Volunteer Teri arranged and delivered
our weekly Muddy’s bouquets
Two students from U of M's Masters in Public
Health program compled their practicums at Volunteers of all ages harvest and
Memphis Tilth in the Summer and early maintain the garden
Fall. Noah Herman and Janna Lipford will
worked with the Garden Elective to analyze
and collect data and in the garden itself.
Project Diabetes

Garden Elective Classes

• Mondays and Thursdays for 1 hour
• 3 7-week elective cycles from July – December
• 13 graduates

December graduating elective class

Garden Elective

Harvesting, washing, storing produce from the garden The garden as a business inspires an entrepreneurship Class

Students watched the solar eclipse together

Project Diabetes

Community Outreach
Two scheduled outreach events
at the Overton Park Community Farmers
Market have taken place, combining
Information from both the Kitchen and CYCFM picture and list other outreach events
Garden. These events have provided access
to information about Memphis Tilth and its
Programs to 471 patrons of the weekly
Market.
New Garden Assets

Many man- and woman-power hours went into the construction of the St. Paul greenhouse. Staff, outside volunteers, and
students all contributed to the process and successful installation of this asset. The greenhouse construction story was
published by the manufacturing company on their website, World of Greenhouses.

Garden Leader Meetings

Alpha Omega

Seed Library
St. Paul Garden
The St. Paul Garden serves as a horticultural demonstration space and greenspace for improved access to locally
grown food and garden-based entrepreneurship in the neighborhood
Location: 571 Walnut St., corner of Walnut St. and St. Paul Ave.

Serves: Advance Memphis Work Life students & community

volunteer groups

Size: 3 lots, ½ acre

St. Paul Garden in early Summer

St. Paul Garden

Preparing In-ground Beds in Winter, 2018 Fertilizing Lettuce in early Spring, 2018

The St. Paul garden grows produce year-round, highlighting seasonal produce and growing methods.
St. Paul Garden

Students and volunteers aid in the planting, harvesting and care of the garden.
Community Kitchen
The Community Kitchen improves awareness of healthy eating practices to
further encourage the purchase and consumption of fruits and vegetables.
Through educational outreach, the Community Kitchen creates food and
beverage environments that are healthy, routine, and easy.

The Community Kitchen primarily serves Advance Memphis students, but

also focuses on outreach in the 38126, 38104, 38107, and 38112 zip codes.

Community Kitchen students making Super Soup Experiencing how much sugar
we tend to drink in a week
Community Kitchen
Goal
Empower students with skills and methods to prepare seasonal produce
locally and improve awareness of healthy eating practices.
The Community Kitchen provides…
• ServSafe Food Handler Certification
• Food access and affordability
• Multi-generational impact
• Basic culinary education, and all elective graduates receive basic
cooking tools to take home
• Recipe sharing and the production of an annual cookbook that contains
student recipes
• Distribution of the cookbook
• Regular community meals prepared by elective students for
other Advance Memphis Work Life participants

Memphis Tilth Garden-to-Table Cookbook is available at

3 Memphis Public Library Locations:
Gaston Park, North Branch and Cornelia-Crenshaw Memorial
Project Diabetes Outreach
Memphis Public Libraries: Annual Seed Swap, March 3rd 2018
• Engage with motivated current and future gardeners while exchanging seeds
• Promote the GrowMemphis Seed Library

City of Memphis Community Center Workshop Series: April 2018

• Demonstration on how to garden and how to cook using the harvest
Attendees swapped seeds and asked questions about their gardens

Cookbook distribution
• Advance Memphis Students
• All Memphis Public Library Locations
• Free to Download at https://www.memphistilth.org/community-kitchen/

Social Media: Newsletters, Videos

• Available at https://www.memphistilth.org/

Children at the Lester Community Center learning about soil and

how to make an easy soup
Community Engagement
Through grants from the City of Memphis and
the TN Dept. of Health, the Community
Garden Organizer and Community Kitchen
Organizer facilitated workshops in
collaboration with community centers across
the city. These workshops were presented to
audiences of all ages and focused on simple
gardening techniques and recipes using
seasonal produce.

Participants pictured here are

practicing “thinking like a
plant,” as they extend their
branches and roots outward in
search of sun and water.
Community Engagement: St. Paul Garden
The St. Paul Garden is a demonstration garden for 38126
community members and volunteers throughout Memphis
and across the country.
400 Volunteer Impact Hours
341.75
350

300

250
Hours

200

150

100

50 21 31.15
2 8 9
0
January February March April May June Students from MUS, Hutchison, and St. Mary’s became
regular volunteers in the garden this Spring and Summer.
Community Engagement: St. Paul Garden

“I just wanted to thank you for allowing me to work with you in the
garden. In that small amount of time you taught me so much about
different ways to plant garden! Because of the experience I am
motivated to look into herbal medicine and other fields that I was
hesitant to go into. Seeing you hard at work in the garden was
extremely motivating to me, and allowed me to think deeper about my
passions in life. You also introduced me to a lot of good books …! I
sincerely hope that I can come back and work with you, maybe even
for a casual harvesting day sometime. I appreciate what you are
doing for this city, and I have no doubt that you and your gardens will
flourish and prosper!”
Leke’la Jones, freshman extern from CBU
Garden and Kitchen Elective
A Strategic Partnership with Advance Memphis
Garden and Kitchen Elective students are participants of the Advance Memphis Work Life
program. This program provides work placement and readiness for adults in the 38126
neighborhood. The skills learned in the Garden and Kitchen Elective are transferable to
different job sectors, and overall, promote a healthy lifestyle that is necessary for pursuing
and maintaining work.

The Garden and Kitchen Elective is designed to:

• Promote physical activity by engaging the St. Paul garden and garden activities
• Enhance the physical and built environment through the care and cultivation of the St. Paul garden
• Encourage practices that recognize and reduce overconsumption of unhealthy food and beverage
options and to make healthy food and beverage options more readily available
• Increase participant knowledge and confidence in engaging and performing garden/growing-related
activities
• Increase familiarity and recognition of local fruits and vegetables through exposure
• Empower participants with the confidence to prepare food for the purpose of increased fruit and
vegetable intake Garden and Kitchen Elective Students in the kitchen

Elective students learning about garden

Project Diabetes Elective Evaluation
To better understand so we can better serve our communities.
Surveys
• Produce they used in the previous week
• Information about themselves (i.e., demographics, height and weight)
• Their current dietary intake
• Feedback on potential barriers and facilitators to using the produce
• Strength and weaknesses of the program Students taking home produce donated to the Pay It Forward Program

Interview
Quarterly interview with one student from the elective

Students towards the beginning of the elective

“I don’t know how to measure because I’ve never measured in my life”
- Jonita Hood during the Measuring and Serving Sizes Lesson

“I used to add so much sugar to my water but now I add only 4 packets and lemon.”
- Antwan Murray after Sugar in Drinks Lesson Students just finished preparing for community meal
Garden and Kitchen Elective Students’ Statistics
Elective Students’ Zip Codes
Project Diabetes: ServSafe Elective Participation
ServSafe Food Handler Course and Exam provides the important knowledge for food safety that are necessary for working in
the foodservice industry. The topics include: basic food safety, personal hygiene, time and temperature control, cross-
contamination and allergens, and cleaning and sanitizing. Upon passing the exam, the participants will receive Food Handler
Certificate from National Restaurant Association.

2017 2018
July-Dec Jan-June Total
3 Classes 1 Class

Certified 8 5 13

Enrolled 15 13 28

Did not take the test 3 3 6

Students diligently taking notes during the ServSafe Elective

Passing Ratio 67% 50% 59%
ServSafe Success Stories

Rodrick Crawford landed a job in foodservice

industry. Because of his certification, he was
training as a manager within couple of weeks
after getting the job.

Rodrick was enrolled in both ServSafe and

Garden and Kitchen Elective.

Garden and Kitchen Elective graduate, Jonita Hood, is now

working in a kitchen at Mitsubishi Electric on President's
Island. We are happy that Jonita is using skills from the
elective at the Mitsubishi kitchen.
Garden and Kitchen Elective at a Glance: January-June 2018
St. Paul Garden:
3 elective cycles completed
• Pounds of Food Harvested: 230 lbs.
• 22 Enrolled
50% increase from last season
• 17 Graduated and received certificates/gifts
• Compostable Materials Collected: Over 200 lbs.
• Graduates received a shovel, seeds, knife, cutting board,
Students and regular volunteers have begun
colander, apron, chopsticks, and hand blender
making many small contributions on a
Attended TN Department of Health Spring Meeting on June 12
weekly basis
• Varieties grown in the St. Paul Garden
• Over 50 varieties of produce
• Over 15 herb varieties
• Perennial and annual flowers
Community Kitchen:
• 3 Community Meals Hosted
• Produce Used in Class: 100 lbs.
• 34 lbs. from St. Paul Garden
The largest Garden and Kitchen Elective students graduated with their peers • 66 lbs. from Bring It Food Hub
• 15 dozens of Eggs from Bring It Food Hub
• 33 varieties of produce were introduced
• 171 lbs. of produce were given to students
Garden and Kitchen Elective: Kitchen Impact
Class 1 Class 2 Class 3
Jan 22 – March 19 – May 14 – Total
March 2, 2018 April 27, 2018 June 22, 2018

Graduated 3 11 3 17

Enrolled 3 16 3 22

Other
4 3 3 10
Participants

Community Meal 28 35 22 79

People students
claimed to share 7 79 8 94
information to

183 People Reached

Gregory Hill, our kitchen leader, preparing mint water for the class
Students in the Community Kitchen

Class 1 students sautéing

Class 2 students creating their own recipes

Students taking home bags of produce donated to the

Pay It Forward Program by the customers of the Bring It Food Hub
Students in the St. Paul Garden

Elective students learn skills and expand their garden vocabulary by practicing
tasks such as composting, transplanting, pruning, and trellising. These skills are
scalable to growing at home or for various employment opportunities.
Sugary Drinks Survey
9 Class cycles took this survey: January 2017- June 2018
Total enrollment: 69
Total graduated: 46
Data available: 52
Absent-not included
Returning students-not included
Student with diabetes: 5 known (included)

American Heart Association recommends

6 to 9 teaspoons (25-37.5g*) of sugar a day
=175g to 262.5g per week

73% of students are consuming alarming amounts of

sugar just from drinking
10% already have diabetes
17% are considered safe (from drinks)

*The Community Kitchen uses the highest end of the sugar intake recommendation for all of our calculations
Changes Made
Who: Students that were drinking alarming amount of sugary drinks
Students that took pre and post surveys

83% said they made changes around sugary drinks

Students’ changes include:

• Drinking less juice
• Cut down on soda
• Switched to unsweet tea
• Start reading nutrition labels and be aware on sugar intake
• Drinking more water
• Replaced all drinks with water
• Quit eating Oreos
• Quit smoking
At the beginning of her elective cycle, Kimberly Hobson said
she “hate water” and was drinking 6 times more
than the recommended daily sugar intake.
By the end of 7 weeks, she cut down on sugary drinks
and trying hard to drink more water that she doesn’t like.
Kimberly’s sugar intake from drinking was reduced by 57 %
Community Meal
3 Community Meals were hosted

79 attendees joined these meals

Sample dishes for the community meal

Kale Smoothies Station
No-Mayo Egg Salad Sandwiches
Smoothie station where students made and promoted green smoothie
Vegetable Sticks with Hummus
Sautéed Beet Top
Herbal Tea
Kombucha

The attendees lining up to try dishes prepared by the garden and kitchen elective students
Student Impact
Tiffany Marks, 2018 Class 3 Student
44 years old mother
Has diabetes and other health conditions

Before elective, she was drinking 10 times more sugar than recommended
• 2 tall glasses of juice per day
• 2 cans of energy drink per day
• 1 glass of chocolate milk per day
• 1 gallon of milk per day

After elective, she made these changes:

• Switched to diet drinks → We talked about chemicals in foods in
details after she gave this information
• Quit drinking chocolate milk
• Reduced milk to 1 small cup a day “because there’s sugar in it”
Tiffany making pesto for the community meal
• Eating more vegetables
• Quit smoking cigarettes
“I’m satisfied but I don’t feel gross. I feel good ”
• Don’t add any salt and trying to cut down on sugar
- On the community meal her class prepared together
• Started reading nutrition labels
“I made a peppermint-infused water and a lemon-infused water. Refreshing!”

“I’m very creative when it comes to cooking. That started here though! Being
creative. Now I’m gonna start at home, too!”
CK extra pictures if needed
Extra pictures on Garden if needed
Sasaki
Memphis Tilth, in conjunction with UT Extension, produced the Neighborhood Food Resilience and Lot Program
Action Plan (NAP) with Sasaki Associates, Inc. to best represent the short-term and long-term goals of residents in the
the South Cypress Creek/Weaver Park neighborhood, as they face threats of flooding, an aging population, housing
vacancies, and food insecurity.

The mandate for the NAP sought to capitalize on vacant land to improve food resilience and suggested various food
uses, including: community gardens, urban farming, learning and sensory gardens, urban demonstration gardens,
apiaries, orchards, perennial gardens, agroforestry, event sites, and agricultural apprenticeships.

Ultimately, our team settled on a community food production strategy designed around Mitchell High School and
proposes a comprehensive school garden program to improve food access and eventually launch a comprehensive
community agriculture network:
(1) Basic agricultural education associated with a school garden/greenhouse
(2) Nutritional/cooking classes offered out of the school’s kitchen
(3) Ag tech training through third-party funding/grants
Mitchell High School
Understanding the background agricultural research that led our team to identify Mitchell High School as the primary
focus of a local food initiative is imperative to buying-in to such a program. Thus, we set forth several fundamental
concepts for engaging communities that may otherwise lack easy access to local foods such as:

Community food production, School gardens, Demonstration/learning spaces, and Sports and food
Food-Related Use Strategies at Mitchell High School

medium to large community gardens, including efforts to improve neighborhood

Community Food Production aesthetics and broadly educate residents on fruit and vegetable production,
harvesting, handling, safety, and preparation.
serve as a central access point for residents, promote daily engagement, and begin
School Gardens to develop necessary infrastructure for further generating other community
garden programs. Local stakeholders frequently have personal connections to
these sites, which can help attract resources and encourage ownership as well.
provide intimate interactions in which children can engage nature through
Demonstration and touch, smell, and taste and develop essential knowledge about the source of
Learning Spaces the food they eat. Schools are also afforded broad control over a garden
curriculum specific to their needs and interests.

Sports and Food should expressly connect with garden projects, as children and young adults
form habits that will long impact their diet and health. Coaches, teachers, and
parents, in conjunction with garden leaders, can integrate sports culture with
the health-conscious philosophy of local foods to build new representations of
the athlete lifestyle.
Estimated Costs: School/Community Garden
The table represents the
estimated cost for building and
maintaining a school garden at
Mitchell High School.

There are many volunteer

opportunities and resources
available to assist in starting this
garden such as:
- Big Green
- Memphis Tilth GrowMemphis
Community Garden Program
- local business solicitation
- School PTA for volunteers and
fundraising opportunities
- Existing school partners
Junior League of Memphis
Community Partnerships and Projects & GrowMemphis Sustainable Garden Grant
• Projects funded by JLM and carried out by JLM Committee Volunteers
• 8-10 JLM Committee Members per project
• Third year of partnership
• Junior League of Memphis and Memphis Tilth will be partnering again in 2017-2018

2017-18 Lester Community Center Project

• New Cedar Beds
• Rain Barrels
• Perennial Fruit Bed
• Trellising
• Frost cloth frames
Upcoming 2018-19
• Gaisman Community Center Garden
• Will be building a sustainable
community garden for GCC.

Amelia, a JLM committee member and new cedar bed

Junior League of Memphis
Community Partnerships and Projects & GrowMemphis Sustainable Garden Grant

Lester Community Center Garden BEFORE

After JLM built new beds
Junior League of Memphis
Community Partnerships and Projects & GrowMemphis Sustainable Garden Grant

JLM contributed to other Memphis Tilth projects throughout the year.

JLM helped start over 2500 vegetable plants for our Community Garden
Network.
Helped build a new Community Garden at Ellendale Elementary.
Memphis Tilth Volunteer Data
• Volunteers are a critical part of our success at Memphis Tilth. Volunteers currently support general Memphis Tilth
operations as well as our programs such as GrowMemphis (St. Jude Garden and St. Paul Garden, Bring It Food Hub,
Community Kitchen, and Alpha Omega Veterans Services Urban Farm and Garden.

TOTAL HOURS:
2626 hours
- 1633 hours from individuals
- 993 hours from groups

TOTAL VOLUNTEERS:
412 volunteers
- 71 Individuals
- 36 Groups (341 people)
Memphis Tilth Volunteer Data
• According to the Independent Sector, “the estimated national value of each volunteer hour is $24.69. The value
of volunteer time is based on the hourly earnings (approximated from yearly values) of all production and non-
supervisory workers on private non-farm payrolls average (based on yearly earnings provided by the Bureau of
Labor Statistics) for the national average. The national average is increased by 12 percent to estimate for fringe
benefits. Independent Sector, in partnership with IMPLAN, indexes this figure to determine state values.”

Memphis Tilth’s Value of Service : $24.69 X 2,626 hours =

$64,835.94

(Source: Independent Sector, 2018)