Community Donations Provide Farm-to-Table Produce to Families in Need
by Angie Matthiessen, Executive Director – United Way of Charlotte County
If a picture is worth a thousand words, the walls in my office could speak for hours. One picture hanging near my desk is of my grandfather. The words it speaks remind me of days gone by when he would take me fishing on the pond and then collecting veggies on the farm. We would return home with freshly picked corn that I would shuck and Mom would transform into her famous homemade creamed corn. My memories of those days include the feel of the fresh air, the earthy smell of the dirt and the sweet taste of the corn.
Two other pictures are of my daughter Leah at Worden Farm. There are different words, different memories, associated with these photos, but in a way, I’ve been sharing my childhood memories with Leah by sharing these times on the farm. I’ve been taking her to Worden Farm since she was a toddler (now age 13), aiming to build additional memories with her as well as to instill a familiarity and love for healthy foods.
With health and well-being for local families as one of its top priorities, United Way of Charlotte County is thrilled to partner once again with owners of Worden Farm, husband and wife duo Chris and Eva Worden in providing Grab & Go Organic Veggie Boxes directly from the farm to food insecure families.
For a donation of $100 you can sponsor four local harvest boxes of assorted organic vegetables to be delivered to area nonprofits. Each donation will provide a half bushel of seasonal produce every week for four weeks throughout the month of November to clients of Kids Thrive and Charlotte County Reads. Your sponsorship will get fresh veggies in the hands, and mouths, of food insecure families.
Many in Charlotte County have recently lost jobs, battled illness, and learned more about Zoom meetings and Google Classrooms than they ever would have wished to. But through it all they have tried to consistently put food on the table for their families. Worden Farm offered this program for Kids Thrive moms last year. The mothers who received the benefits of the Wordens’ green thumbs expressed their gratitude for the bounty. "We all appreciate it more than words can describe,” said one mother from the Kids Thrive program. “The boxes make a huge difference for our families.” Your donation can help ensure that the growing number of struggling households get the nourishing meals they need.
My daughter never knew my grandfather. She doesn’t have memories of walking the farm with him or sitting across the table from him with a bowl of that sweet, creamy corn. What she does have are memories of carefree times at Worden Farm and the satisfying taste of fresh vegetables that she brought home with Mom.
Along with sharing tasty veggies, you will be helping these families to build and share memories with their children like I have with Leah. They might be memories of trying eggplant or turnips for the first time, roasting beets, or simply the memory of a shared feeling of gratitude to a community that cares.
For more information or to donate, visit www.unitedwayccfl.org/wordenfarm or call the United Way of Charlotte County at 941-627-3539. Mission: Mobilizing the power of our community to break the cycle of poverty. Angie Matthiessen is the Executive Director of United Way of Charlotte County. She can be reached at director@unitedwayccfl.org.