SYMONDS, Mississippi. — Robert Jackson hauled a truck two hours away from his farm to his home in Pensacola, Florida, to give away 1,200 bundles of collard greens just days before Thanksgiving.
Instead of giving away free turkeys, like most people, he offered free greens and sweet potatoes.
It’s the fourth year he’s been giving away food during the holiday season. His family farms in Malone, Florida, where they grow row crops such as peanuts, cotton, and corn. They also grow produce like squash, zucchini, okra, and collard greens.
During the longest government shutdown and delays with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, more than 42 million SNAP participants were uncertain about how to feed themselves. Black-owned farms filled the void. Although the government is back open, more communities have ramped up their efforts to feed everyone. Jackson is one of many across the nation — from farmers to churches, sororities, and fraternities — providing free food for those in need this holiday season.
The bundles of greens he gave away this year are almost three times the amount they gave away four years ago. They planted over 12,000 collards this season, and now, they’re preparing for Christmas.
“It’s been growing every year,” Jackson said, referring to their giveaways. “It warms my heart. I’ve always been a giver. I’ll help anybody.”
A “blessing” and “spiritual connection”
In other cities like Hinesville, Georgia, residents are partnering with elected officials to feed their communities.
Ojonek Menefee knows what it’s like to be alone for the holidays.
The military relocated her to Georgia, where she has lived for the past six years, over 2,700 miles away from her family in Sacramento, California.
“Being in the military and being away from family, you don’t always have a place to go for Thanksgiving,” she said.
This year, she decided to do something different.
Menefee, now a Realtor, teamed up with City Councilman Jose Ortiz and other organizations to feed the community of Hinesville, a city of 35,000. On Nov. 25, the group hosted a Thanksgiving food drive, giving away free food, hot meals, raffle items, and hired a DJ for musical entertainment.
“I was told that if you won’t share a hot dog, you won’t share a steak, so it just means a lot to make sure you take care of those around you,” Menefee said. “The community that you have is the community that you’re in.”
In the rural Mississippi Delta, the Evans family in Symonds, Mississippi, opened their farm in early November, so others could take free greens home. “Evans Farm we just love playing in the dirt, come pick all you want for free,” Jerry Evans Jr., one of the farmers, wrote on Facebook.
The only ask: pick your own greens by hand. On Nov. 8, at least 85 people showed up to pick their greens, one day after Evans published his post.
Two weeks later, Layla Young, a native of Cleveland, a few miles down the road, took them up on their offer. On a gloomy Friday, Young trekked through the muddy field, scouring for collard, turnip, and mustard greens to take back home.
Young had never picked her own food before, and felt a spiritual connection to the experience, especially being the daughter of a sharecropper.
“It was a blessing to receive from someone else’s offering,” Young said. “While I was out there, I realized how disconnected I was to the generations before me. … It was a way for me to get a glimpse of what my father did on the farm when he was growing up.”
With high costs of food, the free greens provided a reprieve for her family, who hosts friends and relatives for the holiday.
“We’re coming to an age where we need to lean on our neighbors more than what we’ve had to,” Young said. “It connected me with community, meeting other people while out there, and also telling others about it so they can benefit from it, too.”
About 36 miles away, the Greenville Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. served over 300 families — including a local nursing home and adult day care — throughout the county.
In Dayton, Ohio, three community members sponsored an event to give away free chicken, BBQ ribs, turkey, mac and cheese, baked beans, cornbread dressing, and more.
Back in Florida, Jackson wishes there were more grants or resources specifically for Black farmers to increase their impact, especially during the holidays.
“I wish there was more funding out there. Trying to do it out of your back pocket, it kind of hinders you a little bit,” Jackson told Capital B. “If I had funding or grants, I would be willing to plant as much as I can plant just to be able to give back to food banks and the Black community to just help people, period.”
Great Job Aallyah Wright & the Team @ Capital B News Source link for sharing this story.
