Food Co-op Updates: Winter Market & $5 Challenge
The Dorchester Community Food Co-op has some exciting updates:
The $5 Food Challenge is on! Everyone is invited to bring a $5 dish to the Potluck Dinner! Cook a healthy dish for 2-4 people using only $5 of ingredients, and bring it to share with your friends and neighbors. Prizes for the best dishes! Sunday, October 23rd, from 5 to 7 p.m., at the Second Church in Dorchester, Codman Square, 600 Washington Street. Admission is free, just bring a dish to share or enter into the contest! For more information, or to sign up for the contest, visit http://dotcommcoop.wordpre
More information about the Winter Farmers’ Market is now available! The market, which will feature farm fresh produce, entertainment by area artists, and local meat, bread, cheese will run on Sundays, from 12 to 3 p.m., during the months of January through March. It will take place in the Great Hall of the Codman Square Health Center (corner of Washington & Norfolk). Grand Opening January 8! Follow the link for a Winter Farmers’ Market flyer.
Grow at Home! Apply for Build-a-Garden!
Grow your own vegetables at home! The Food Project’s Build-a-Garden program supports Boston residents and organizations to grow their own food in raised bed and container gardens. The program will provide you with: a raised bed garden or container garden kit, including soil and compost, seeds and transplants, a Growing Guide, workshops, and additional support by phone, email, blog, and newsletters.
All Boston residents are encouraged to apply. Priority is given to those who live in Roxbury, Dorchester, and Mattapan, and to those with financial need. No prior gardening experience required. While applicants generally need to have their own space for a garden, The Food Project will try to match you with alternative accommodations in your neighborhood if necessary. Individuals can download an application here. Groups, and those seeking more info or multilingual flyers, should visit http://thefoodproject.org/build-a-garden. You may also contact the Build-a-Garden Coordinator by phone (617-442-1322 x12) or by email (buildagarden@thefoodproject.org). Want to spread the word? Download and print this flyer.
Subsidized Hubway Memberships for Low-Income Residents!
Hubway, Boston’s “bikeshare” program, is offering $5 annual memberships to Low Income residents of the city! Get a subsidized membership code and free helmet by calling 1-617-534-5690. You must be 17 or older to apply. Subsidies are established in partnership with the Boston Public Health Commission Chronic Disease Prevention & Control Division. Distribution of subsidized memberships will likely take place until the bikes are taken off the streets for winter (i.e. November) and resume when they return (i.e. March). You can view &/o download a flyer here. Continue Reading »
Harvest Festival & Perennial Divide Oct 1, 2011
At City Natives, 30 Edgewater Drive, Mattapan, 10 to 2. Enjoy the fall bounty! Take advantage of a gardener’s market of native plants, fresh produce, honey and family arts and crafts. Learn about beekeeping and also get your garden questions answered!
How the Perennial Divides Work:
Participate in the popular plant swap with other gardeners! Bring pre-divided plants you’d like to share and, bring containers to take other plants home. Continue Reading »
Neponset Trail Extension: Walk & Meeting
Join Boston Natural Areas Network (BNAN) and MA Dept of Conservation & Recreation (DCR) for a walk of the planned Greenway Extension through Mattapan Station Weds, Sept 7th, 5:30 to 6:30 pm. The group will meet at the Mattapan Station Platform near the shed and walk to get a closer look at the plans for the Greenway around the station. They’ll look specifically at the area planned for the “canopy walk,” possible connection to the station, area south of the station where the trail is planned, as well as the proposed visitors center location on the square.
This is happening RAIN OR SHINE! Be prepared for a possibly muddy walk, wear boots, bring an umbrella.
The Neponset River Greenway Council meeting follows, Wed Sept 7, 2011
7:00 – 9:00 p.m. at the Milton Yacht Club, 25 Wharf Street – Lower Mills/Milton Village. All are welcome on the walk, and to the meeting.
Here is the link to the proposed Neponset Trail Extension, see Option B Revised on page 20 for the most up-to-date route proposal.
Farmers’ Markets: helpful information
We support local farmers markets! For several years DEHC has been getting the word out about our local markets’ locations and schedules – and we even helped initiate a new and thriving market at Ashmont T station. DEHC is working this season at most of the Dorchester markets, providing hands on assistance to the market managers and farmers setting up before the market and packing up after the market, and passing out free consumer information and goodies during the market.
We thought we’d use this space to provide general and, we hope, useful information for consumers/shoppers and for farmers’ market managers:
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Did you know that you can use your SNAP EBT benefits to buy fruit and vegetables, plants and seeds at our local farmers’ markets? Also get 50% off with the Boston Bounty Bucks program.
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Definition of a farmers market: Continue Reading »
Public Market Commission Subcommittee on Specialty Foods Meeting, Sep. 7
The Subcommittee on Specialty Foods (baked goods, jams and jellies, ethnic foods, pastas, nuts, etc.) will hold a public meeting on Wednesday, September 7 at 3:30 p.m. at 1 Ashbutron Place in Boston, MA. The meeting is a chance for Commission members to learn about how a year round public market in downtown Boston can benefit producers of these foods. The meeting will be chaired by Commissioner Carole Cornelison of the Department of Capital Asset Management. The official notice is posted here. Visit www.mass.gov/agr/publicmarket to learn more. You may also contact Mark Lilienthal with questions at mark.lilienthal@state.ma.us or 617-626-1183.
DEHC’s Food Cooperative Initiative is working to insure year-round food access (for all types of food) to residents of Dorchester. As such, DEHC happily publicizes any notices that promote increased local food access opportunities, as well as economic development of local producers.
MyDotTour 2011 a success!
Check back for all sorts of coverage of this great project here on this page over the next few weeks!
Chris Lovett interviews the MyDotTour project coordinator, Kate Balug:
Guided Tour Connects the Dot from Chris Lovett on Vimeo.
NOTE: Even though the youth-led walking tours of August 2011 are over, you can still take the tour – go to the MyDotTour website for more information.
Food Coop Potluck Get-Together, Aug. 25
Collaborate for food access; cooperate for community! The Dorchester Community Food Co-op is having a Pot Luck Dinner and general get together at 6 p.m. on Thursday, August 25 at the beautiful new Nightingale Community Garden—recently renovated by Boston Natural Area Network, near the corner of Park St. and Washington St. in Dorchester. The garden is alive with activity, and is a model for creating a space that brings together the full diversity of Dorchester residents. Please come and bring friends and neighbors who are interested in creating a new cooperative market in Dorchester!
For more information, read the Food Co-op’s August 2011 monthly update here.
Food Coop Flyer Now in Vietnamese!
The Dorchester Community Coop informational flyer that you may have seen at farmers’ markets throughout Dorchester has been translated into Vietnamese! DEHC and the Food Coop are working to make our outreach process more inclusive, and this includes providing multi-lingual resources.
Want to learn more? View the Food Coop Flyer in English or Vietnamese (Tieng Viet).
