Common Threads Farm

ng Break and Summer day camps at Western Washington University’s Outback Farm. As COVID-19 has impacted all of our lives in significant ways, we’ve had to make some pretty big shifts in how we serve our community and keep everyone safe. We’ve been proud to serve our community by supporting the Bellingham Public Schools Weekly Meal Distribution- we’ve grown and distributed more than 2,200 lbs of organic produce from our school gardens since April. We’ve also offered more than 2,273 hours of service in support of the Farm to Freezer program: a coordinated effort to purchase locally grown food products to provide vital income opportunities for farmers and to build inventory for food banks and hunger relief agencies to distribute during the post-harvest months. We’re proud to say we’ve prepared more than 37,000 quarts of soup with the Farm to Freezer Program. Our Food Educators have been leading in-person COVID-safe garden lessons and providing meal support to students in the Bellingham Connections Program. Food Educators have also been offering Zoom Cooking Classes on a pay-what-you-can basis that allow kids and their families to cook a meal at home featuring vegetables. Finally, we’ve continued to build a culture of equity both within our organization and in our community- we know that food access and education cannot be discussed without considering the legacy of racism that we are long overdue in addressing in every aspect of society. We recognize that food insecurity disproportionately impacts communities of color and we are committed to learning how we can continue to support the efforts of our community in combating these complex issues. In these unusual times, the question we continue to ask ourselves is a simple one: how can we help? Answers will continue to emerge and we will continue to offer updates as they do. We’re proud to be finding our way through this challenging time in such a resilient and creative community!