Flock Food Project
The Flock Food Project is a collaborative effort spearheaded by the Mingo Ladies and the Capital East Soccer Club, to help in the fight against food insecurity and scarcity in the Madison and Dane County area. We have established three programs through which we hope to address these issues in the community.
Member Gardens: By assisting CapEast members in the creation of gardens at their own residences, including apartments, we are hoping to support food independence. Having a garden at home allows the freedom to grow your own desired vegetables, and to reduce your food expense. Having fresh food sources available at arm’s length makes eating healthier not only fun and rewarding, but also simpler and easier, which can make the difference between choosing something quick from the store or quick from your own garden.
As an organization, we will help members create their garden plan, provide the material resources needed to make that plan come to life, coordinate a volunteer day for members of both organizations to come help build the actual garden, and offer a support system of experienced gardeners as needed. Gardens will be established on a first-come, first-serve basis and the sign-up form has been released to eligible members from CapEast - so get that back to us as soon as you can!
Volunteer Garden: We have an established garden plot at Troy Gardens to provide fresh food to community members through a delivery and pick-up service. The garden plot will be opens near the end of April and a workday schedule is posted for anyone to come and volunteer their time. Individuals will be on-hand at every workday to guide you in the daily gardening duties, but we also welcome any gardening tips and tricks you’d like to share with us! A sign-up for volunteer slots will is now available- you can sign up here.
At-Home Volunteer Gardens: We are encouraging members of The Flock, CapEast, and beyond to add to their existing garden infrastructure at their own homes, or try their hand at gardening for the first time! We encourage individuals to donate excess produce either back into the delivery system for CapEast scholarship recipients, or to their own local food pantry or organization of their choice.
We welcome everyone to follow our Facebook group to join The Flock Food Project community where they can connect with all of our gardeners. This group will also be used to share encouragement throughout the season by way of educational videos, tutorials, local events, and content sharing.
How to Get Involved: There are lots of ways to get involved in both the planning and the implementation of these programs! Please sign-up to volunteer at the garden or be notified of future opportunities via the links below:
Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/flockfoodproject
Email - mingoladies@fwdflock.com
Volunteer sign-up - https://signup.com/go/ugBCVKT
We also appreciate that not everyone has the time available to volunteer. If you would like to contribute but aren’t able to at the moment, please consider a financial donation to support the program.