On Tuesday, Dec. 23, Mountain Roots volunteers put together 225 Christmas dinners for families in need in the Gunnison valley as part of their weekly effort to end food insecurity within the community.
All the food provided for the meal boxes is purchased, via donations to the nonprofit, from local farms and ranches, most of which were founded in or after 2010 with the help of Mountain Roots.
“We started by figuring out how we could grow more food here, how we could encourage other people to be farmers here,” said executive director Holly Conn. “Back in 2010, it was maybe the first year of the Crested Butte Farmers Market, and there was a prevailing myth that you couldn’t grow food here, so we set out to bust the myth. We started with careful crop selection, with donated land and a whole bunch of volunteers.”
Since then, Mountain Roots has aided in the start up of several farms such as Gunnison Gardens, Iola Valley Farm, Calder Farm and Parker Pastures, which was just emerging in 2010.
Fred Field was packed with potatoes, squash, meats and fresh produce from around 22 different local farms. The volunteers lined the tables and smoothly packed each bag, filling all 225 in less than 45 minutes, an effort that seemed to come naturally to everyone involved.
Volunteers ranged from elementary schoolers to long time Gunnison locals, mixing first time volunteers with seasoned veterans.
“You sort of build that community by seeing each other at various [volunteering] events,” said Gunnison’s Earl Devanny.
Inside a community that cares so much about each other’s well being, there’s an even deeper connection.
“It makes me feel like I’m giving back to the community,” said Janet Welsh Crossley when asked about her involvement. “The community has given a lot to me.”
Mountain Roots aids 160 families in the community weekly with fresh meals, but they’re also a pillar in the valley’s economy.
“One of the core values is that we pay farmers and ranchers and cheese makers and pie makers and chefs a fair wage for their produce, which is why we fundraise so much,” Conn said. “The food system doesn’t work if it’s not part of the local economy.”
Conn said that farmers are included in the long list of community members suffering from food insecurity.
“We do this all year long,” she said. “Every single week we have 160 people on a list. We open enrollment for that whenever spaces open up. Right now the list is full because our need has been really high, so we’re fundraising so that we can open up more spaces after the new year. So far that’s going pretty well.”
Members recertify every year, and are able to graduate themselves off the list once they are able to sustain themselves, opening up spaces for more people in need.
“We’re hoping to build food security for people, not just provide them an endless stream of food relief,” Conn said. “We want to meet people where they are but also improve their state.”
Mountain Roots is always accepting donations and volunteers via their website https://www.mountainrootsfoodproject.org/ .
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