Why I'm Participating in the Big House 5K: Chelsea Parker
2/21/2019 10:31:00 AM | Features, Community Engagement
The 2019 Big House 5K: Trail to the Victors presented by Toyota on Sunday, April 7, will benefit six local, non-profit organizations selected based on the support they provide to our Washtenaw County community in key areas like housing, healthcare, the arts, youth programming and social services. In the weeks leading up to the race, MGoBlue.com will share stories from people inspired to participate this year because of one of the beneficiaries.
By Chelsea Parker
My name is Chelsea Parker, I am participating in the Big House 5K for Growing Hope of Ypsilanti.
Growing Hope helps people improve their lives and communities through gardening and increasing access to healthy food. They work to educate, inspire and empower the community -- in schools, at their urban farm and their farmers markets around southeast Michigan.
Before my time at Growing Hope, I was specifically looking for places in the area that participated in the betterment of the people and the community. That's when I came across Growing Hope. I'm so glad I did my internship at Growing Hope. My time at Growing Hope really inspired me in my path to becoming a social worker. The group of people I specifically got to work with were senior citizens.
I rode around in Growing Hope's fresh produce truck to a few senior communities around the Ypsilanti area. The senior residents that we approached came out each week to get their share of fresh produce. No matter what time we arrive at the site, they were always waiting -- anxious to be the first person in line to buy produce. At that moment, I felt very happy to be able to help those with little to no access to the grocery store in general. Helping them with access to fresh products that will benefit them in the long run was just a bonus!
Overall, my experience at Growing Hope was a 100/10! I am honored to participate in the 5K on their behalf!
About Growing Hope
Growing Hope fosters a just and equitable local food system where all people are empowered to grow, buy, sell, prepare and eat nourishing food. We are rooted in the Ypsilanti community, but our impact expands across Washtenaw County and the region. We serve people in our community who have barriers to accessing healthy, affordable food through running the Ypsilanti Farmers Markets and the Ypsilanti Mobile Farm Stand. Local farmers and food vendors sell at our Markets and we support these growing food entrepreneurs through our new Incubator Kitchen and offering free classes to jumpstart their businesses. Every year, hundreds of young people visit our Urban Farm in Ypsilanti where they learn about growing fresh food, and healthy cooking. Volunteers from across the region get their hands dirty on our Farm helping us grow seedlings for home, school and community gardens. We sell, donate and distribute much of our produce to Ypsilanti restaurants and our community neighbors while empowering residents to start and organize their own gardens.
