Harvest Party at Well House

Well House is celebrating the harvest with a community block party on Saturday, September 21 from noon to 4 pm at Well House, 600 Cass SE. The event is free and anyone is welcome to join Well House tenants, volunteers, board members and neighbors in the celebration.

“We’re celebrating the first harvest with our new and expanded urban farming program. We were able to grow food for our tenants, some of our neighbors and sold extra produce at local farm markets,” Tami VandenBerg, executive director of Well House said.  “An urban farm is more than a ‘nice’ thing to do. It provides good, healthy food for people who’ve been without access, some for many years. It provides a skill-building work environment and shows our neighborhood that our yards and open space can be used for community good,” said VandenBerg.

More than half of the food at the party will be provided from the Well House urban farms, the rest has donated from local farms and vendors that support the work of Well House.

On the menu is corn on the cob, collard greens, pasta and green salads, Well House’s salsa, black beans and tortilla chips and grilled hot dogs. There will be live music, games for the kids and a photo wall. People will be able to tour Well House’s properties and learn first hand from tenants and staff about Well House’s housing first model.

“Well House presently provides housing for 12 homeless people—they pay rent for their room and shared living space and have the option to work on the farm or other housing-centric projects,” said VandenBerg. “We’re growing, too. We expect to have another house open in October,” she said.