Olivette Service Corps is our newest initiative, created here at Olivette Riverside Community and Farm to allow Olivette to give back to the larger community of Asheville – which has given us so much. We are very excited to announce our first proposed project, a community garden that will serve those in need created in collaboration with Asheville based Bounty and Soul. Bounty and Soul is a non-profit organization creating healthier communities by providing fresh healthy food, nutrition literacy and health & wellness resources.They are committed to developing a cooperative model that can be used in communities where food insecurity and malnutrition exist. Please visit their website to learn more.
Tama and I had the great privilege to serve recently at the Bounty and Soul Thursday market at Owen High School. It was an amazing experience seeing people being offered free health education coaching from a certified health coach, having a delicious and healthy recipe being cooked and shared, and then receiving an abundant variety of healthy foods to stock their pantries and fridges for the week. There was even pet food for the four legged and furry friends!
We are just at the beginning stages of planning the community service garden and seeing how the collaboration will actually work. What we do know now is that Olivette has confirmed at least 1/2 acre of garden space we can use for the project, that Bounty and Soul is excited about the collaboration, and that our own Farmer Joe and Tama will spearhead Olivette Service Corps participation. Any Olivette community member or in fact anyone else who wishes to jump in and serve can contact Tama directly and he will orchestrate!
We are so very excited about this and spring cannot come too soon so those of us so abundantly blessed to be at Olivette can give back!
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