Once again, last month’s grub party was off the hook! Over 40 people attended February’s event, including current and past cooking class students, grub box members, residents, volunteers, youth, and more. Dannae Washington and Talib Shahid entertained the crowd with an interesting and gross Fast Food Jeopardy game, with Talib steppin up in his first ever People’s Grocery presentation. Talib also filled in with a clutch performance (our entertainer called in sick), creating a grub box poem on the spot! Finally, featured chef Nancy Wei from Revolution Foods cooked up a meatless, yet delicious, pumpkin lasagna for all to try.

One attendee, Kelly, and I watched as her 5 year old daughter devoured a plate full of lasagna. Kelly told me she is very picky about her food and is always surprised when she likes to eat foods aren’t the “norm.” Kelly signed up for the cooking class right there.

Towards the end of the event, a young lady walked in and asked asked what was going on. She told me that she lives in the neighborhood and was out taking a walk, when someone told her that “they’re making some crazy stuff in there!” So she dropped in to try the pumpkin lasagna.

Now that’s generating a buzz! The next Grub Party will be:

“A Spring Thing”

Featured Chefs (2!): Greg Mann and Sim Peyron of the Pacific Coast Farmer’s Market

Entertainment: “Slap Team” of Cal Prep Academy

RSVP at erica@peoplesgrocery.org or call (510) 652-7607. We hope to see all of you there!

Please check out the following CBS Story to see former PG youth staff, Tevah “V” El Emmet chop it up with CBS5.  He speaks of his life, his work with People’s Grocery, and his blazin’ eco-conscience brand of Hip-Hop.  You also get to see him choppin’ it up not only at  People’s Grocery cooking class, but also on the Mic.  We are proud of you Tevah!

Every week People’s Grocery holds open work hours for our two urban gardens in north Oakland. May it be one volunteer or ten, the help is always welcome and appreciated, giving our urban garden and Grub Box manager, Jason Uribe, a chance to get to know more people from the community and teach some urban gardening skills. Groups from schools and organizations also join us to learn about People’s Grocery, organic gardening, and jut to get their hands dirty!

In November the group Roots and Shoots visited our 59th street garden. Parents and their children prepared vegetable beds, planted beans and cover crop, pulled weeds and played.

Joyess planting cover crop at 59th street

Filling buckets with compost to prepare the soil for peas

Planting peas in a perfect line...makes for easy staking later!

Check the PG website for garden work days and join us outside!

People’s Grocery youth staff Kie’layameosha Carswell and Dannae Washington guide an excuisite salad-making demonstration and members of Youth Movement Records perform spoken word and original tracks at Novermber’s Grub party at beautiful Defremery Park in west Oakland. Working together, stories are told, food is shared, and coalitions are built between the youth of several non-profit organizations…the future is bright!

Youth choppin it up at the Grub Party

Youth Movement Records Performance

The final product..yum!

November 8, 2008. It’s an overcast morning, nearly 9 o’clock and a group is forming in front of the People’s Grocery office in West Oakland. Although it’s Saturday, about twelve people from the east bay decide to spend the day at the farm work party! We all pile into the van and set off for a day in Sunol full of preparing beds on People’s Grocery’s new acre of land, planting lots of garlic and broccoli, and engaging in great conversation.

One of our youth Staff, Jennifer Copto, describes the day for us…

We are calling all supporters of urban agriculture and food justice to turn their attention to the Hmong Gardenerss in Fresno, Ca. A bustling 4 acre piece of urban land is in the process of becoming a police substation in Fresno, Ca. According to an article on indybay.org the land was originally purchased with community development block grants and a police station may not fit within the original intention of the land use scheme. The city has offered to relocate the gardeners to a park site 1/8 the size of the garden. This garden feeds over 300 people, so according to our calculations that leaves 262.5 people without access to healthy, affordable, culturally appropriate fresh produce. What about these people we ask? Our list of concerns go on and on.

We are asking people to fax, call, and email Fresno City Council to tell them to keep their hands of this productive example of sustainable agriculture. Those city council members to contact are : Blong Xiong, Paul Capriolio, and Calhun their info can be found at

http://www.fresno.gov/Government/CityCouncil/Default.htm

We saw what happened to the South Central Farm in LA and
 we don't want to see another loss of
that scale to community food security.
 These farms and gardens are the example we should be
replicating, not removing!
For more info please check out this article:
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/10/21/18545827.php

Check out Danae and Jennfier pack fresh organic veggies from the People’s Grocery Farm for our Friday GRUB BOX (CSA)

Get a little live taste of the Grub box in the making and learn a little about the aphids and ants too