The Gardens Will Help Connect Community Members Together in the Fight Against Food Deserts
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK / ACCESSWIRE / August 20, 2020 / Dr. Tammy Gray-Steele, founder of National Women In Agriculture Association (NWIAA), is proud to announce the launch of a new Soil Sisters project that will provide free home gardens to families throughout the Oklahoma City, OK community.
To learn more about the Soil Sisters project and to volunteer, make a donation, sponsor a back yard garden or to request one, please visit www.nwiaa.org/soilsisters.
As the ladies of the NWIAA noted, the team at the NWIAA know that many local families live in what is called a food desert, which means they do not have easy access to fresh foods due to a lack of grocery stores in their neighborhoods. As a result, many families rely on available fast food and other unhealthy choices in order to eat.
To help reduce the negative impact of food deserts, which contribute to the poor health of the community and may make them more susceptible to COVID-19, the ladies of the NWIAA were inspired to launch the Soil Sisters project. Because gardens have been deemed essential by the State of Oklahoma, it will be possible for NWIAA to proceed with this generous project and continue to assist low income kids with the help from the community.
"The gardens will be built at the homes of the people who sign up for one, and the only requirement is that they grow enough to share with three other local families. Since families cannot come to our garden center, we are bringing the garden to them," said Nina Womack from the California Chapter of NWIAA, adding that there will be two garden types available through the project: the Girlfriend Garden, which is grown directly in the cultivated soil, and Nana's Nutritional Garden, which is a raised bed box garden.
In keeping with tradition, NWIAA's Soil Sisters will self-fund the first 10 gardens for their communities in Oklahoma and would love to be able to meet the needs of any other community garden requests within their 29 National Chapter organizations. Amanda Edwards from the Florida Chapter of NWIAA noted that, "Donations, volunteers, and supplies are highly needed to meet the needs of our underserved communities. All who request a home garden should be granted their request."
Dr. Gray-Steele said she and everyone at NWIAA are all looking forward to teaching local families the skills to produce healthier and culturally based foods for their own households and others in the community.
"Our main focus is on creating the gardens to connect the community together in the fight to combat food accessibility," she said.
About NWIAA:
Since February, 2008, the NWIAA, which was founded by Dr. Tammy Gray-Steele, has inspired hope and empowered communities by providing innovative outreach education that feeds over 58,000 people per year, many of whom are dealing with food insecurity throughout the United States. The non-profit partners with organizations at community and governmental levels, assisting local advocates to help combat COVID-19 food shortages with sustainable homebased gardens. The Soil Sisters project's vision is that every child is properly nourished, feels safe and is empowered to attend one of the NWIAA's Sustainable Science Academies in their community and gain an education. NWIAA has also submitted the Title 36 Charter application to Congress to become a pilot project under the 4H Foundation; when approved, NWIAA would have sufficient resources to continue all programs into the foreseeable future giving underserved children an equal chance in education. For more information, please visit https://www.nwiaa.org/.
National Women In Agriculture Association (Headquarters)
1701 N. Martin Luther King Ave.
Oklahoma City, OK 73111
Contact:
Dr. Tammy Gray-Steele
[email protected]
1-405-424-4623
SOURCE: National Women In Agriculture Association