September News from the Food & Health Network

News from the FaHN Team

Happy September! As we transition out of summer, there are also many exciting transitions happening at the Food & Health Network. We are happy to introduce you to Tom Lewis who will be serving with us over the next year as an AmeriCorp VISTA member, and to express our gratitude to Olivia Consol for everything she has contributed during her two years of AmeriCorps service.

From Tom: "Hello everyone! My name is Tom Lewis and I’m excited to be joining FaHN as its new AmeriCorps VISTA Member! I grew up in rural Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania about twenty minutes south of Binghamton, and as a result of my rural upbringing, I was surrounded by community centered agriculture from an early age. One of the best memories from my childhood was having a vegetable garden in my backyard and having access to fresh produce. On top of growing up eating produce grown behind my house, my knowledge of and interest in food comes from having spent five years working in the produce department at a local grocery store in Hallstead, Pennsylvania. There I was able to work with local farms to supply some of our produce needs and I learned how many people lacked access to healthy food on a consistent basis. This experience helped me to see the importance in fighting both rural poverty, and local food insecurity.

In addition to working at the store the past five years, I graduated from Binghamton University this past May with degrees in Political Science and Economics. I am excited to be staying close to a community that I grew up around, and then attended school in over the past three years. I hope that by the end of my service I’ll have helped an area that means so much to me.

My interest in local food systems, community centered agriculture and urban gardens brought me to the Food and Health Network and I’m thankful I’ll have the opportunity to work with local communities in fighting poverty. In the past, I have experience working on neighborhood revitalization projects and also on environmental and labor advocacy. I’m hopeful I’ll be able to use my prior experience during my time here to continue to advocate for social justice. In the future I intend to attend graduate school in food systems, sustainability, or a similar field!"

From Olivia: "I completed my second and final AmeriCorps term on August 12, a very bittersweet day! I enjoyed my first term with the Rural Health Network, and I’m glad that I got to expand my service through another term with FaHN. In the last year, I’ve worked with more than 500 children in Whitney Point and Windsor, teaching them about healthy, local food. I also helped with FaHN’s communications projects, including our social media accounts and creating our Year in Review. AmeriCorps was a great stepping stone for me to advance my career goals and work on important issues in our community.

My experience with FaHN has given me a broader perspective of our regional food system and helped prepare me for my next career steps. I’ve truly enjoyed working with FaHN and all of our partner organizations. Thanks for a great two years of AmeriCorps."

September is Hunger Action Month!

Hunger Action Month is an opportunity for community members, businesses, civic organizations, elected officials, and congregations to get involved and take action in their local communities to help end hunger. What can you do? Whether it’s by advocating and raising awareness, making donations, or volunteering, you can find a way that’s right for you.

Did you know there are 3 Regional Food Banks in the FaHN area? Visit the Food Bank of the Southern Tier, Food Bank of Northeastern New York, and Food Bank of Central New York to learn how to get involved.
Download the 30 Ways in 30 Days calendar from the Food Bank of the Southern Tier.
Events: Attend the Tioga Anti-Hunger Task Force's screening of "A Place at the Table" on September 8th at 6 pm in the Newark Valley Village Office Building.

Register Today! Wash Line Design & Post-Harvest Handling Workshop

Join Cornell Cooperative Extension of Broome County, the Food & Health Network of South Central NY, and New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets on September 14th from 1 pm to 4 pm at North Windsor Berries to hear from Cornell Vegetable Program's Robert Hadad. The workshop will be focused on learning how to design build and operate a small-scale, DIY post-harvest handling system. New and small growers will have the opportunity to learn about good washing and handling- food safety, maintaining high quality and efficiency, and also about affordability. To learn more you can register here.

Farms that complete the workshop and chose to pursue GAPs certification in order to sell to schools are eligible for financial assistance!

Chef Ann Foundation
Project Produce: Fruit & Veggie Grants for Schools. No application deadline. Learn more here.

Southern Tier Agricultural Industry Enhancement Program (STAIEP) Grant

Application Period 2: July 11-September 19, 2016. Learn more here.

Community Foundation of South Central New York
Community Fund Grants - Cycle 2: September 6, 2016.
Small Grants: September 15, 2016.
Learn more here.

George A. and Margaret Mee Charitable Foundation
Applications due September 30, 2016. Learn more here.

Park Foundation
Submissions deadline September 30, 2016. Learn more here.

NE Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education
Partnership Grant deadline: October 25
Farmer Grants deadline: November 29
Learn more here.

NYS Department of Agriculture & Markets
Farm to School Competitive Grants 2016 - Applications due October 5, 2016. Learn more here.

Whole Kids Foundation
School Garden Grant - Application period is September 1st - October 31st, 2016. Learn more here.

Youth Programs Coordinator, Food Bank of the Southern Tier - Learn more here.

Production Assistant, Food Bank of the Southern Tier - Learn more here.

Farm to Table Butcher Shop & Grocery Retail Position, The Piggery - Learn more here.

ESNY Nutritionist 1, Cornell Cooperative Extension Association, Norwich, NY - Read more about it here.

AmeriCorps positions promoting Food Access & Health! Positions available with a range of organizations. View positions and apply on the Rural Health Service Corps website.

Earlier this summer, the FaHN Steering Committee gathered at Stone Horse Farm in Marathon, NY for our annual planning retreat. Pictured from left to right: Olivia Consol; Diane Albrecht; Matthew Griffin; Jack Salo; Nancy Eckstrom; Lauren Tonti and Erin Summerlee.

Member Spotlight: Farm & Food Business Incubator Offers Training & Processing Opportunities

Our FaHN member feature this month is the Center for Agricultural Development and Entrepreneurship (CADE), based in Oneonta, NY. CADE and SUNY Cobleskill are seeking participants for the Farm & Food Business Incubator. Participants will be able to receive business training and value-added product development for new and expanding farm and food entrepreneurs. The incubator will provide resources for both new entrepreneurs and also one's that are looking to expand. Local and national experts will provide educational training and participants will have access to customized support and mentoring. Value-added producers will have the ability to process without on-farm infrastructure. To read and learn more about the business incubator you can go here. To see a list of all the upcoming events CADE is sponsoring you can go here.

About CADE “For the past 25 years, CADE has been working with entrepreneurs to build a more viable food system." To read more about CADE go here.

Join us in 2016 as a FaHN member or sponsor! You can help us and our partners: