BFC’s Southeast Center is located in Wards 7 & 8—the most consistently impoverished areas of the city. High unemployment, stagnant wages, and the ongoing economic downturn have all been recent elements of what is a larger pattern of long-term neglect in these “east of the river” neighborhoods. Part of that neglect takes the form of what can be described as a “produce desert”: food is not lacking, but healthy, locally grown produce is not readily available.

Bread for the City aims to provide the necessities of life to our low-income neighbors: the basic resources that keep a person clothed, with access to medical care when needed, a roof over their heads and, of course, with a full stomach. With our rooftop garden project, however, we are striving to go further: to create community spaces for growing our own food and learning from each other.

This project doesn’t come a moment too soon. Lacking outdoor space leads to isolation in a community, as one of our clients can attest. As a senior citizen with mobility issues due to an old knee injury, she typically sees no reason to leave her home. But she comes to every garden workshop in order to enjoy the fresh air, the company of our staff and other clients, and to learn more about how to grow her own food. This type of social support is invaluable, and we aim to create more of it through the completion of this project. Adding patio furniture and artwork to the space will go a long way towards making our Southeast Center roof a place where people want to spend their time. And once they are in this space, they are more likely to attend our regular garden workshops, take home their own garden starter kits, and contribute to the local food movement themselves.