Grow With Us! Good Food Council of Lewiston-Auburn
A nonprofit fundraiser supporting
Good Food Council of Lewiston-AuburnYour gift supports collaboration toward food security & economic resilience!
12 donors
raised $1,385
20 donor goal
Halfway to our goal!
We are now halfway to our 20 donor goal! Whoo hoo!
Thank you to everyone who has made a gift to support our work in 2024 of collaborating across organizations, businesses, and municipalities toward local food security and economic resilience.
We thought we’d share our recent related social media post:
Pictured from R to L: Julia Harper (staff), Jeff Newell, Kristen D’Eramo, Kirsten Walter, Camille Parish, Misty Edgecomb, Blaine Flanders, Katie Collins, Suzannah Deeves, and Eric Fleischmann (staff)
Not pictured: Fatuma Saney, Omar Hassan, Kyra Bleicher, Megan Gagne, Emma Lorusso, and Kate Webber
At our Food Council December board meeting, we each reflected on what we were grateful for about the Lewiston Auburn Area Community, as well as our privilege in the last year to collaborate within and around our organization toward a more just and resilient local food system and economy. It was clear we are all deeply grateful for the true power and heart of our community, as well as the diverse and transformative nature of food systems (and other) work we get to do through prioritizing our relationships and communication. We know this is a sentiment that reverberates throughout LA, perhaps felt more deeply this year than any other in recent memory. Our community knitted together more closely in the wake of tragedy - each contributing in ways big and small - leaving no one able to doubt how interdependent on each other our safety and ability to heal and grow truly are.
Relationships and trust are at the core of our Food Council’s theory of change, and we look forward to a 2024 full of healing, rebuilding through collaboration, as well as celebrating our many strengths and collective future. If you would like to join us and support our work in 2024, we would be grateful for your support in growing in these directions.
We have a 20 donor goal for our current “grow with us” community fundraising campaign - gifts of any size help us reach that goal.
Our Community Fundraising Campaign: https://www.mightycause.com/story/OpfusfThank you Auburn, Lewiston, and beyond
Who We Are
The Good Food Council of Lewiston-Auburn (GFCLA) is made up of people who live and/or work in Lewiston, Auburn, and surrounding communities. We work to create a vibrant and equitable food system in the greater Lewiston and Auburn area, from farm-to-fork. As a community-based organization, we work alongside partner organizations, community members, and local producers, to understand local needs and leverage resources toward a sustainable food system.
Our Work
In recent years, global events including those caused by the climate crisis, geopolitical violence, and a pandemic have brought about a significant disruption in an already fragile food supply chain. Maine still imports over 90% of our food, and statewide, 1 in 5 children are food insecure. In some cases, for the first time, Maine residents have come to understand the critical importance of building a robust food system locally to ensure the kind of community resilience that will nourish our communities and continue to power local economies.
In response, the GFCLA continues to work on long-term solutions,
An addition, a key current priority has been leading a community engagement and listening process to develop an updated Local Foods Action Plan for Lewiston and Auburn to advance the local food system and economy for the next 3-5 years, which will be complete in early 2024. This process builds on the tremendous success of the 2020 Local Foods Action Plan that connects local food access strategies to city planning and downtown revitalization strategies. The updated plan will pair tangible Actions with diverse organizational, business, and municipal leadership commitments toward the Plan’s four Goals. The GFCLA will then continue to coordinate the updated plan's implementation phase by supporting, connecting, and working alongside a wide range of community members and partners to realize the plan.Local Foods Action Plan for Lewiston and Auburn
Grow With Us!
Our work is ongoing -- we will continue to serve as a voice for a healthy food system in greater Lewiston-Auburn and prioritize long-term solutions for food security and economic resiliency. With your help, the Lewiston-Auburn region will benefit from food system solutions that will help us through the next crisis.
If you can, please consider a donation today to help us reach our goal of 20 donors!
All amounts are helpful and appreciated. Thank you!
2023 Council Members
Camille Parrish, Fatuma Saney, Kirsten Walter, Omar Hassan, Jeff Newell, Kyra Bleicher, Megan Gagne, Misty Edgecomb, Blaine Flanders, Emma Lorusso, Suzannah Deeves, Katie Collins, Kristen D’Eramo, and Kate Webber
Staff
Julia Harper and Eric Fleischmann