project leader
Stacey M
location
High School for Public Service Youth Farm
Brooklyn (Prospect Lefferts Gardens)
latest update rss
Volunteer at the Farm!

the project

Our community faces a severe lack of fresh produce. The High School for Public Service Youth Farm is located in an area designated by the city as a FRESH Food Store Area, meaning it is under-served in food retail in addition to having high rates of diet-related disease and obesity. For many families, the most affordable food often comes from fast food restaurants and bodegas.

the steps

We already have the farm and class in progress, however, our lack of proper culinary equipment is holding us back from fully engaging everyone in the classroom. Imagine teens eager to cook, sitting around waiting for a knife or a cutting board. This equipment will last a long time on the farm supporting not only our Go Green! class but also our summer youth employment program during which the teens prepare lunch everyday fresh from the farm. We will be growing greens and mushrooms in the classroom this winter, so we will be cooking all throughout the year. The sooner we get the equipment, the more students will benefit.

why we're doing it

Go Green! is a new 10th grade Health class that uses the High School for Public Service Youth Farm as an outdoor classroom to study sustainable agriculture and its effects on environmental and public health. Students have learned skills such as seed starting, compost management, harvest practices and culinary techniques. Many have tried and enjoyed previously unfamiliar vegetables while preparing recipes like Tomatillo Salsa and Raw Kale Salad. Our summer youth also help run our farmers market selling affordable produce to the community. This coming summer, the teens will run cooking demonstrations during the farmers market and distribute recipes to the community. This fall, the students cooked a healthy, delicious $1 meal in class, and we hope to continue proving that meals can be affordable, nutritious and yummy.

budget

Dry erase board on easel $50.00 2 $100.00 (Large box) Dry erase markers $15.00 3 $45.00 Display table at market $100.00 1 $100.00 Postcards with recipes (paper) $0.05 300 $15.00 Aprons $3.00 20 $60.00 Flexible cutting boards $4.00 8 $32.00 Knives Set $60.00 2 $120.00 Mixing / serving bowls $8.00 5 $40.00 Mixing / serving spoons $8.00 5 $40.00 Hot plates $50.00 2 $100.00 Skillets $18.00 2 $36.00 Saucepans $18.00 2 $36.00 Blender $25.00 1 $25.00 Colanders $4.00 2 $8.00 Salad spinner $25.00 1 $25.00 Dinnerware Set $30.00 2 $60.00 Cups $2.00 24 $48.00 Flatware Set $20.00 2 $40.00 Ladle $8.00 2 $16.00 Picnic Tables $75.00 2 $150.00 Table cloths $10.00 4 $40.00 Towels $4.00 8 $32.00 Harvest scissors $8.00 8 $64.00 Box of Plastic Gloves $10.00 3 $30.00 Washing tubs $8.00 6 $48.00 Drying Racks $20.00 2 $40.00 Storage tubs for cooking materials $30.00 3 $90.00 Cooking & Cleaning supplies (things we can't grow: oil, vinegar, salt, beans, rice, bleach, soap, etc) $100.00 1 $100.00 ioby fee = 123, TOTAL = 1771

updates

Volunteer at the Farm!

Youth Farm at the High school for Public Service needs your help on the farm!  They need help digging new beds, transplanting spring crops, turning compost and more. Please dress for the weather, with closed-toe shoes, and clothes you can get dirty along with a water bottle and lunch. Please email bee(@)bkfarmyards(.)com for more info.

Location: 600 Kingston ave, Crown Heights, between Rutland and Wintrhop

 

Date(s) and Time(s): 10am-3:30pm

April 7th, April 21st, May 5th, May 19th, June 2nd, July 7th, August 4th, August 18th, September 15th, October 6th, November 3rd. 

Christine Quinns eats with BK Farmyards!

The teens did an amazing job at the Summer of Celebration tonight in Crown Heights where they did cooking demonstrations and chatted with all the community leaders about food and farming. I thought I would share this photo of some of them with Christine Quinn. She is an enormous local food advocate, and was very interested in the efforts of everyone who helped build the High School for Public Service Youth Farm. She will definitely be visiting sometime this fall. (And she LOVED the Asian-Style Collard Green Salad they prepared.)

Thank you to the team who gives local teens opportunities to become leaders in their community. Dare I say, tonight was magical.

Stacey Murphy
www.bkfarmyards.com

Cooking with Bk Farmyards this summer!

See what Bk Farmyards is up to!  More photos here.

Thank you! Teens learn to cook delicious and healthy food!

photos

This is where photos will go once we build flickr integration

donors

  • Anonymous