So far in my community organization, I’ve been observing how connected healthy food access can be to one’s overall health and wellbeing. For example, when we do our pop-ups at elderly homes, I’ve noticed that not too many of the residents there have access to just go to a grocery store, so a lot of them depend on Fresh Corner to supply them with what they need. Furthermore, when we do our pop-ups at schools, we are adding healthy after school snacks/meals that they can purchase as opposed to just getting stuff at a nearby convenience store that can be less nutritious. Thus, I realized that some of the most vulnerable populations when it comes to limited access to foods can be children and the elderly.
I’ve also observed that my organization is looking to expand this year and applying to several grants and Food Assistance programs, so I am trying to get involved with those! I’ve been looking up areas that we could expand and also figuring out ways to make a “how-to” guide on our program model so that others could use it as a guide for creating their own in other area of Michigan or the country.
As far as Detroit, I’ve noticed a strong importance of sustainability and urban gardens, which is pretty cool especially being that it was a very industrialized city due to the automotive history. I’ve also noticed the extreme amount of gentrification in the downtown/”midtown” area. However, in other parts of the city, there is little to no change.
That’s awesome that the pop-ups can provide additional healthier options to Detroit youth and it’s elderly!