Haven's Harvest Hamden Expansion!
Haven's Harvest is expanding our work in Hamden to recover good, excess food and redirect it to people, by engaging
more food donors and community sites as partners.
Leader
Lori Martin
Location
225 East Grand Ave New Haven, CT 06513
About the project
Haven's Harvest mission is to address the conundrum of foodwaste and food insecurity. Food waste is 22% of what is in landfills in the US- and it is a considerable producer of greenhouse gases. Food insecurity is a significant issue in New Haven County at 12.9%- which is a bit higher than the food insecurity rate in Hamden at 12%, while 39% of families with children struggle to put food on the table. The obstacles to food recovery have been the lack of community partners able to accept food and transportation for the food from donor to those sites. We have a growing network of volunteers ready to use their vehicles and a few minutes of their time to reduce food waste and get folks fed.
The project of the expansion in Hamden requires a hands-on person in the Hamden area- meeting with business owners and creating relationships with community partners- such as faith communities, social service agencies, schools, daycare centers, a senior day center or residential sites. Matching the time, type and amount of food donation to the community site is an art crafted by conversation and care.
Our experience is that business owners are generous and want to not waste their excess food- but the time and energy needed to get food into hands of community members is daunting. We are able to offer flexiblilty around donations times and amounts because of our committed volunteers who watch the app for new runs that fit their schedules.
The Steps
January 1, 2019
- Hire an intern!
- Work 1:1 with the intern for the first two weeks-
-to give an overview of what food recovery looks like in our area
-address liability protection
-food handling and safety procedures- servsafe handling course
-app training
- Rescue food and track amounts donated/rescued
Why we‘re doing it
The positive social impact from rescuing food and feeding one's neighbors is huge. The rescued food provides for academic improvement for children, bolsters family budgets and supports seniors in our community. Every part of the transaction is positive and affirming of one's wonderful community and the amount of caring that exists. Our direct delivery model of food recovery helps the environment, feeds our neighbors, and provides for sharing conversations and caring interactions within the greater community. As one volunteer calls it- "a love connection" between donor, volunteer and receiver. Another says "it is the gift that keeps on giving". Our friends at Hope Academy speak to the impact our partnership has had on their community here.
Please become a part of what we do!