Councilmember Tommy Wells, the chairperson of the D.C. Council’s Committee on Libraries, Parks, Recreation, and Planning, touted the health, educational, and environmental benefits of community gardens.  He proposed that the D.C. government play a more active role to ensure that local residents have an opportunity to grow their own food.  Wells noted that under the District’s 1986 Food Production and Urban Gardens Program Act, the mayor was instructed to establish a food production and urban gardens program.  This program would collect and maintain an up-to-date inventory of vacant lots which would be accessible by the public and it would implement policies encouraging “the donation and cultivation of vacant lots.”

Julie Day and Rashelle Celestin, who work for Baltimore City’s Department of Housing and Community Development, were invited to describe Baltimore’s Adopt-A-Lot program, which makes more than 4,000 vacant lots available for community gardening and neighborhood beautification projects.  Each lot is listed on the department’s Web site.  The application process to license a vacant lot takes approximately two weeks.  After the group has used the space for one year, it can renew its license for up to five years.  The department works with the city’s Bureau of Water and Wastewater to provide each garden with water, charging $120 per growing season.  The city has also formed partnerships with land trusts to preserve community gardens and open green spaces.

Access to water is a challenge for many community gardens in Washington, D.C.  Scott Kratz of the Pomegranate Alley Community Garden in Capitol Hill explained that his garden relies on an adjoining garden center, Ginkgo Gardens, to provide the gardeners with water.  Addie Cook, the president of the Fort Stanton Community Garden in Anacostia, said that the garden has not had access to water since it opened in 2001.  At one time, the fire department sprayed the garden with water but that is no longer the case.

A common theme among those testifying is the lengthy and complicated process to lease vacant land.  Groups that would like to lease a vacant lot must work with numerous city agencies to identify the owner, acquire permits, and determine taxes and tax liens.  Stephen Coleman, the president of Washington Parks and People, pointed out that in order to build the North Columbia Heights Green community garden, his organization had to work with seven city agencies and invalidate 45 tax liens.  Many who testified suggested that the city should provide the public with a list of vacant lots that are available for community gardening and urban agriculture purposes, streamline the process to lease vacant land, and designate a staff member who would work with them to coordinate the process.  Several people recommended that D.C. tax codes and land use regulations be revised to make it easier and less expensive for groups to establish urban food gardens.

Through their testimony, individuals and organizations revealed that despite the barriers they face, they have managed to transform vacant land, rooftops and even the back of a truck into food-producing spaces.  As they shared their success stories and the challenges they face, citizens were making the case that with more government support, the District of Columbia could become a center of urban food production.

To watch the entire hearing, visit the D.C. Channel 13 on-demand video Web site for the week of December 11-17 and scroll down to the “12/15/2011 Public Hearing, Committee on Libraries, Parks, Recreation and Planning.”

About the author:  Cintia Cabib is a local documentary filmmaker.  Her latest documentary, A Community of Gardeners, explores the vital role of seven community gardens in Washington, D.C. and shows how these green spaces are changing people’s lives, their communities and their environment.

The week Matt wrote to us, the theme was Food and Family. Matt was so inspired by his holiday experience that he sent a poem called, “Thanksgiving Goodness” and a picture of his inspiration, his family’s array of Thanksgiving desserts.

Thanksgiving Goodness

Thanksgiving goodness/
Beckons fondue on apples/
And squash fresh, savory.

-Matt “Mateo” Young, ’11

Matt is a friend of Save Our Safety Net and the Bread for the City family. We’re glad that the Storybank has given us an opportunity to hear from great people interested in sharing stories and making food justice happen. Thanks, Matt!

We still want to hear your stories. This week’s theme is Food Justice. Got a story about Food Justice? Click here to contribute to the Holiday Helpings Story Bank! Read more stories of the holidays here.

Skillshares are informal events for exchanging skills which might be useful to our clients. Turnout has been growing since our first two–”Share Photos on Facebook” and “Computer Tips and Tricks”–and each time we’ve discovered new ideas for things we want to teach and learn together.

We’d like you to join us on Friday, December 9th for our next skillshare, Interview Your Family.

We’ll be joined by guest facilitator, friend, and blogger Danny Harris. Danny interviews DC residents from all walks of life and publishes the stories he collects on his blog, People’s District. Thanks Danny!

Got a media skill to share? Email us at storybank@breadforthecity.org

I loved my grandfather, James Madison. He ran a tobacco and dairy farm. I spent most of my summers on his farm. We would wake up around 5:00 in the morning, and I would help him bring the cows up from the lower grazing pastures to the milking bays. We would feed the hogs and check the chicken coops for eggs to eat at breakfast. While Granddaddy milked the cow, we would eat breakfast with the milk and eggs. The milk was so fresh my grandmother had to blow the creamy butter away from the rim of the pitcher so that the butter in the milk would not go into our cereal bowls. No pasteurization or preservatives, and, no surprise, we never got sick or had an allergic reaction to all that freshness.

I was sixteen years old before I had a birthday in my home town of Pittsburgh, PA. When I got off the big Greyhound bus each summer in Appomattox, VA, my grandfather would say, “Here comes my city grandson, down to the country to see how real men earn a living.” He would tease me, “Farming is hard work, and city boys do not know anything about working hard.” Then he would laugh with his big, boisterous laugh.

My grandfather was also a very religious, God-fearing man. When the sun started to get a bit hot and I started to fade, he would quote scripture (Genesis 2:15):

“AND the Lord took the man (Adam), and put him into the Garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.”

My Garden of Eden is now located at 1525 7th Street, NW, Washington, DC. While working in Bread for the City’s Rooftop Garden this spring and summer, I swear I could feel my grandfather’s presence at times. One day this nice, warm, melancholy feeling came over me, and it was so strong that I started tearing up. I had to get control of my emotions before someone thought that I was crazy. I could hear my grandfather’s voice telling me “farming is hard work, but I prepared you for this very day.” That hot summer day set me up for a healthy make over.

From that moment on, my whole being changed! I made an appointment with BFC’s nutritionist, Sharon, so that I could take advantage of these fresh vegetables that I was harvesting from the Rooftop Garden. Sharon set me up with a good nutritious diet along with correct portion sizes. I lost twenty five pounds, my blood pressure got back to normal levels, and the exercise from riding my bike down to BFC and working in the garden made me feel one hundred percent better. Needless to say, Doctor Randi in the health care clinic was proud of me.

BFC’s Rooftop Garden was not only good for my health, but also my soul! BFC helped me take better care of myself, so I can be a blessing to others in my community. It reconnected me with the teachings of my childhood, that we need to fight for each other and fight for the earth, to be able to take care of each other and stay on our land. I’m glad for my Garden of Eden — a place where more people have the support to be whole people, together in community.

Want to share your own story? Go to Bread for the City’s story bank to share your traditions, memories, hopes and wonders.

How it works: You shop like any other day, EXCEPT that 5% of all sales at the two Whole Foods locations that day will go toward growing the WIC and SNAP (food stamp) programs at the 14th & U, Mount Pleasant, Bloomingdale and NoMa farmers’ markets during their 2012 season.

Learn more about the project here.

What: A public oversight roundtable on community gardens and urban agriculture
When: Thurs, Dec 15, 2011 from 1–5pm
Where: 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW (Room 412, John A. Wilson Building)

Councilmember Tommy Wells, Chairperson of the Committee on Libraries, Parks, Recreation, and Planning, will convene a public oversight roundtable to discuss community gardens and urban agriculture in the District, including the Department of Parks and Recreation’s role in the establishment and use of community gardens, as well as the Office of Planning’s work in this subject area.

Submitting testimony in person
The Committee invites the public to testify or to submit written testimony, which will be made a part of the official record. Those who wish to testify should contact Ms. Tawanna Shuford at (202) 727-8204 or tshuford@dccouncil.us before 5 p.m. on Tuesday, December 13, 2011. Individuals will be permitted 3 minutes for oral presentation; individuals representing organizations or groups, 5 minutes.

Submitting testimony in writing
If you are unable to testify at the public oversight roundtable, written statements are encouraged and also will be made part of the official record. Copies of written statements should be submitted to Ms. Tawanna Shuford, Committee on Libraries, Parks, Recreation, and Planning, Room 117, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, 20004, or electronically at tshuford@dccouncil.us, by 5 pm on Friday, December 16, 2011.

Of note, one working group is to focus on food issues in DC. Anticipated topics include: local food production; commercial distribution; access to land and the food grown on it; security and links to social services; composting; and community benefits for health, education, and jobs.

Time: Tues, Nov 29, 2011 from 6:00-8:30 pm
Place: Walter E. Washington Convention Center (Room 202B)
RSVP: If you’re interested in attending, please RSVP here.

Harriet Tregoning (Director, DC Office of Planning) and Christophe A.G. Tulou (Director, DC Department of the Environment) invite you to join Mayor Vincent Gray on November 29^th from 6:00 to 8:30 pm at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center as they present the progress from the “Start in September” outreach, and establish working groups to develop recommendations.

In their own words:

“On behalf of the Mayor, we thank everyone who contributed ideas at sustainable.dc.gov, attended one of over 50 public meetings and events, or tweeted during our #SustainableDC Twitter chat.  Now it’s time to take our initial collection of ideas, existing local efforts, and the best national and global examples of sustainable practices to develop our vision, goals, and priorities.  The plan will also evaluate environmental and health benefits, and take steps to strengthen the city’s economic vitality and build community.

On November 29^th, we will begin the meeting together as a group to hear from Mayor Gray, review input to date, and map out the Sustainable DC planning process.  We will then break out into nine topical working groups:  the built environment, climate, energy, food, nature, transportation, waste, water, and the green economy. We invite you to actively participate in one (or more) of these working groups, which will delve into the details of these topics over the course of four to six meetings from December through February.  At the mid-point and again at the end of the working group process, all participants will come together to share ideas and address the critical connections among these working group topics.

While all meetings will be open to the public, we are asking those who wish to officially participate on a working group to commit to some basic roles and responsibilities.”

For questions, please email sustainable.future@dc.gov or call (202) 442-8809. For more information on the plan and to follow plan updates, please visit http://www.sustainable.dc.gov/ or click here.

We look forward to working with you to make the District the greenest, healthiest, most livable city in the nation!”

<p id=”internal-source-marker_0.24210531348375175″ dir=”ltr”>At this time of year, feasting is in order. Many Thanksgiving dishes handed down from year to year are delicious, but not necessarily healthy. Most of us remember eating sweet potatoes swimming in cinnamon, butter, marshmallows and sugar. Delicious, right? It may nourish your spirit, but it’s not good for your body.</p>
<p dir=”ltr”>Good thing you don’t have to sacrifice taste and tradition to create a healthy meal! Sharon Feuer Gruber, BFC’s nutrition consultant, held a cooking class at the Southeast center last week to get people focused on healthier ways to cook some typical holiday foods. On the menu this month: cabbage salad, sweet potato wedges, and apple compote.</p>
<p dir=”ltr”>We started by working together to prep the food.</p>
<iframe src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/gi8pte7RscU” frameborder=”0″ width=”420″ height=”315″></iframe>
<p dir=”ltr”>As the sweet potatoes were cooking and people were cutting up the fresh herbs for the salad, Sharon shared the health benefits of the foods they were using.  We talked about how the skin of the sweet potatoes has lots of fiber and nutrients and should be scrubbed and eaten along with the rest of the sweet potato. Why spend money on the whole sweet potato and then toss the healthiest part? And we talked about the nutritious fats the meal featured, including those in the walnuts we sprinkled on top of the apples.</p>
<p dir=”ltr”>The salad was simple — combine red cabbage, carrots, scallions, cilantro, orange segments, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, and a touch of maple syrup in a big bowl. (Full recipes are below.) We served up the salad, piping hot sweet potato wedges, and delicious apple compote, and sat down to eat and talk.</p>
<p dir=”ltr”>We learned that several people had seen recipes like the ones Sharon demonstrated, but hadn’t tried them at home because the combination of foods wasn’t something that they normally ate. One client said the dishes were “surprisingly good.” And everyone ate them up. Several of the attendees were there because their doctors wanted them to change their diets. They wanted to prepare healthier meals for their families, and the cooking class seemed like a good place to start.</p>
The class finished up by brainstorming ways to modify <a href=”http://dcfoodforall.com/2011/11/holiday-treats/”>Stuffed Meatloaf</a>, a recipe that was shared with the Holiday Helpings Story Bank earlier in the week. You can use the same tips with your favorite holiday dish!

Here are the original ingredients:

1 pound ground beef
1 pack of bacon
1 cup of sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)
½ lb. steamed shrimp
1 container crab meat
1 bottle barbecue sauce
1 pack of crackers
1 egg
1 nine inch baking pan

And here are the suggestions from the participants in the nutrition/cooking class:

- Use ground turkey or ground chicken instead of ground beef.
- Add fresh vegetables like green peppers, garlic, onions, and tomatoes.
- Add kidney beans.
- Use hot sauce, tomato paste, or tomato sauce instead of barbecue sauce.
- Use rice, corn flakes, or bread crumbs instead of crackers.
- Use egg whites instead of whole eggs.

Enjoy your holiday!  Have fun and think healthy.

<strong>Nutrition Class Recipes:</strong>

<em>Rosemary-Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges</em>
3 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound total)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 stem and 1 tablespoon of fresh rosemary leaves OR 2 tablespoons of dry rosemary
8 garlic cloves (peeled but not chopped)

1.    Preheat oven to 400°F.
2.    Heat oil briefly to just below simmer. Let a couple of rosemary stems and a few garlic cloves soak in it for about 10 minutes. Remove rosemary and garlic, reserving oil.
3.    Cut potatoes lengthwise into 1/2-inch-thick slices.
4.    Toss potatoes in the reserved oil, coating potatoes. Sprinkle potatoes with rosemary and place on baking sheet or shallow baking pan. Add the cloves of garlic.
5.    Roast about 20 minutes total, or until tender.

<em>Berkeley Cabbage Salad</em>

1 head purple cabbage
3 carrots
½ bunch scallions (also called green onions)
½ cup fresh cilantro <em>(optional)</em>
Olive oil ¼ cup
Apple cider vinegar 3 T
Maple syrup 2 t
Sesame oil <em>(optional)</em>
Mandarin orange segments <em>(optional)</em>
<ol>
<li>Thinly chop cabbage, carrots, scallions, and optional cilantro. Place in large bowl.</li>
<li>Whisk together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, and optional sesame oil. (Taste dressing to be sure proportions are to your liking.)</li>
<li>Toss salad with dressing and optional mandarin orange segments.</li>
</ol>
<em>Apple compote</em>

Apples
Cinnamon
Walnuts <em>(optional)</em>
<ol>
<li>Preheat oven to 350</li>
<li>Chop apples into 1-inch cubes.</li>
<li>Place in shallow baking tray and cover bottom of tray with water.</li>
<li>Sprinkle apples with cinnamon.</li>
<li>Bake for 30 minutes or until tender.</li>
<li><em>Optional</em>: Sprinkle with chopped walnuts before serving.</li>
</ol>