Community Roots, Inc.

2009-2013

A Not for Profit 501 (c) 3 Corporation

VISION

To Promote Local and Organic Agriculture by Serving as a Model and Resource for Others; Providing Strong Environmental, Economic, and Social Benefits Resulting in Re-establishing Deep Connections with the Earth, Our Community, and Each Other

MISSION STATEMENT

To be a Premier Community Organic Farm Providing Healthy Food, Educational Programs and Community Outreach Opportunities

THE NEED:

Community Roots, Inc. is an ever-growing group of individuals and organizations who are dedicated to bringing about positive change through developing a productive self-sustaining organic farm in Volusia County, Florida. Our farm (6 acres) is located within the city limits of Lake Helen (pop 2850) and is part of a 70 acre cattle pasture. Lake Helen is conveniently located 1 mile from Interstate 4 between Orlando and Daytona Beach.  It is 35 miles Northeast of Orlando and 23 miles from Daytona and New Smyrna Beaches. There is well over a million people living within a 45 minute drive.

The farm will serve as an educational resource center by growing and providing fresh, local and organic vegetables, fruits, herbs, honey, and tender sprouts to be sold at reasonable prices.  A portion will be donated to struggling families and local food pantries.  It will also provide organic materials to support larger farming operations as well as the home gardener. Farming and gardening educational workshops will provide “hands on” training in “how to start seeds,” “insect control,” “soil management,” “water catchment,” “composting” and others.  Organic farming and gardening practices are best learned by doing and seeing.

Currently, community outreach efforts include the “Love Garden” program (Local Organic Veggies Everyday).  Love gardens are raised bed gardens constructed for low income families and underserved organizations like the Children’s Home and the Boy’s and Girl’s Club at no charge. They may be purchased by others as well. The organic Love Gardens program includes a hand made, raised bed garden, nutrient rich soil, starter plants, seeds and training to maintain the garden.  Ongoing follow up of each garden, as well as a “train the trainer” module, are major components of this program.  Data will be collected from each new Love Garden installed, both before and during follow-up, to evaluate the effectiveness of this program.  About 25% or 56,000 Volusia County households fall within the definition of  low income and 14.1% or 70,223 of the resident’s incomes are below the poverty line. These are US Census Bureau estimates from 2008.  There is a great need in providing support to these people. 

The School Garden Partnership Program supports schools that want to develop “Outdoor Classrooms” involving all aspects of growing.  It is a wonderful program that provides our expertise in planning, installing and helping to maintain the gardens and a propagation house.  Ongoing training is provided to the key personnel, usually a few teachers, who spearhead the project.  School gardens are in big demand and the curriculum for each grade and subject is available online. 

Many people, if not most, would love to have their own family garden, especially now during hard economic times. However, Central Florida has many challenges for the organic farmer as well as the home gardener.  Many people were not born and raised here so they do not understand the challenges. Some come from up North where the growing season is well defined and understood.  Or, some people do not know how to garden and others can not afford the cost of getting started.  Here in Volusia County, planting starts in the fall (Sept-Oct) and planting continues through mid April and the main harvesting is complete by late May.  Few vegetable crops can withstand the excessive summer heat and humidity. We have overlapping seasons with variable and extreme changeable weather patterns, from tropical storms to drought, and then from excessive heat to frost and freeze.  Pressure from insects, plant disease and weeds adds to the challenge. Another big challenge is the poor quality of the soil.  In Central Florida the soil consists mainly of sand.  A well-balanced soil contains equal parts of sand, silt and clay.  A large amount of organic compost is needed to create fertile growing conditions. There is a lack of good organic compost in all of Orange, Seminole and Volusia County because only one surviving dairy farm exists to provide manure to make good compost.  Despite these many challenges, successful organic gardening and farming is feasible.  Community Roots, Inc. can provide solutions utilizing principles of community involvement, environmental conservation, sustainable growing and recycling methods.

There is a great opportunity to create a new food production and distribution system here in Central Florida.   Community Roots is leading the way by creating an organic farm (educational center) as a central hub which will support the greater community.  Today, due to soil depletion, pesticide use and long-term food storage and processing techniques, most foods are nutrient poor, toxin laden, mineral deficient, and enzyme dead. More and more consumers are demanding healthy and nutritious foods. The challenge is to develop more organic farms, more organic farmers, greater farm capacity, and a more sophisticated distribution infrastructure to meet this demand.  At the same time we need to assist the “little guy” in creating more productive home gardens. 

GOALS:

1. DEVELOPMENT

Community Roots will develop strategies to seek philanthropic and government support to help finance its growth and subsequently the growth of additional organic farms and gardens

a) Encourage federal, state, and local governments to invest in projects that promote local organic agriculture through public relations and developing effective grant proposals

b) Develop programs with private foundations and other donors who support and promote organic farming and innovative agricultural efforts affecting social and economic outcomes

c) Produce a flow of capital generated from the sale of farm related products and services

            1) Retail and wholesale sales of organic vegetables, fruit, and herbs

            2) Plant starts

            3) Sprouts/wheatgrass

            4) Compost

            5) Love gardens

            6) Educational materials

            7) Workshops

            8) Consulting

            9) Salad, sprout, and smoothie food vendor truck

d) Build a propagation house for plant starts, sprouts, pots, Love Gardens, hydroponics etc. (To be developed)

e) Make compost (to be developed) utilizing relationships with others

            1) Pick up contributions from grocers

            2) Obtain fish for fertilizer

f) Plan and landscape the farm utilizing nature, the environment, and Eco-friendly living

g) Irrigation

2. LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Community Roots will support a strong local economy

a) Identify key stakeholders in the region (farms, farmers markets, food buyers, food consumers, natural food groceries, mainstream groceries, restaurants etc.)

b) Map out economic relationships between these key stakeholders

c) Develop opportunities to create living wage “green” jobs with “hands on” training and apprenticeships

d) Support family farming and encourage opportunities for families to sell the products they grow

e) Support Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)[1]

f) Promoting, restoring, and improving Florida’s natural habitat

f) Serve as a regional center and prototype for providing expertise to enable replication of additional community organic farms

g) Provide employment for unemployed and disabled members of the community

3.  EDUCATION

Many of this and the next generation have no idea where their food comes or how to grow it. Community Roots will promote training of future organic farmers and gardeners and provide activities designed to educate the community.

a) Workshops

            1) Health and nutrition

            2) How to farm large urban property

            3) Home gardening - How to garden at home

            4) Ecologically conscious farming

            5) School gardens- “Train the trainer”

            6) Composting

7) Food production

8) Rain barrel

b) Networking services for sharing information, ideas, techniques, methods, and solutions

            1) Website and other electronic social networks

            2) Newsletter

            3) Conferences

            4) Strategic partnerships

c) Internships/apprenticeships/volunteer opportunities

            1) World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF)[2]

            2) College students from nearby universities

            3) Community service- court ordered and voluntary

d) Continuing to educate, at all levels including the children of the next generation, the importance of farming is the one way to have a positive impact

1) Educate children and teachers about the benefits of organic food and encourage school gardens

4. COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Community Roots will reach out to troubled youth, low-income families, and other struggling families to provide goods and services

a) Assisting troubled youth in the community through teaching “hands on” organic farming, business and communication skills, and self respect through hard work

b) Providing “Love Gardens” to qualified families and underserved organizations

c) Facilitating produce/vegetable swapping (to be developed)

d) Donating nutritious, fresh, food to community food pantries

5. ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION

Community Roots will build an organizational infrastructure to support the 2009-2013 strategic plan

a) Maintain part- or full-time staff for key positions

b) Recruit needed expertise for the Board of Directors

c) Develop construction plan for farm and initiate capital funding campaign

d) Each year, staff develops a month-by-month operational plan for the coming year. This will be reviewed with the Operations Manager

e) Increase compensation and benefits for staff commensurate with increases in funding

f) Develop job descriptions containing duties and responsibilities and required knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform them.

g) Develop a clear decision-making structure

6. MARKETING

Community Roots will develop an advertising and public relations program to encourage the identified target markets to purchase/grow/consume locally grown and organic food.

a) Create an Integrated Marketing Campaign strategy

b) Identify the target markets with different messages and strategies for each market

c) Create a synergy through all components of the marketing program so that every component has a consistent look, name, and is sending the same message. Elements will include:

1) Multi-media advertising campaign

2) Public Relations

3) Public events

4) Website

5) Brochure

6) Posters

7) Slide shows

8) Cable access video

9) Direct community outreach

          10) An organic food vending truck

          11) Product identification-branding

7. MONITORING AND EVALUATION

Community Roots will be primarily evaluated for the effectiveness of the implementation of the strategic plan as well as for its ability to facilitate larger community participation.

a) Maintain an e-mail list so e-mail surveys can be used to gauge effectiveness of efforts

b) Solicit feedback from various stakeholders and community, gather data, analyze, report

c) Independent consultant or trained volunteer will lead evaluation effort

d) Follow-up with recipients of low-income based Raised Love Gardens

e) Follow-up with volunteers

f) Numbers of farm participants

g) Volume of nutritious food provided to the needy

Strategic Plan

2009-2013

A Not for Profit 501 (c) 3 Corporation

VISION

To Promote Local and Organic Agriculture by Serving as a Model and Resource for Others; Providing Strong Environmental, Economic, and Social Benefits Resulting in Re-establishing Deep Connections with the Earth, Our Community, and Each Other

MISSION STATEMENT

To be a Premier Community Organic Farm Providing Healthy Food, Educational Programs and Community Outreach Opportunities

THE NEED:

Community Roots, Inc. is an ever-growing group of individuals and organizations who are dedicated to bringing about positive change through developing a productive self-sustaining organic farm in Volusia County, Florida. Our farm (6 acres) is located within the city limits of Lake Helen (pop 2850) and is part of a 70 acre cattle pasture. Lake Helen is conveniently located 1 mile from Interstate 4 between Orlando and Daytona Beach.  It is 35 miles Northeast of Orlando and 23 miles from Daytona and New Smyrna Beaches. There is well over a million people living within a 45 minute drive.

The farm will serve as an educational resource center by growing and providing fresh, local and organic vegetables, fruits, herbs, honey, and tender sprouts to be sold at reasonable prices.  A portion will be donated to struggling families and local food pantries.  It will also provide organic materials to support larger farming operations as well as the home gardener. Farming and gardening educational workshops will provide “hands on” training in “how to start seeds,” “insect control,” “soil management,” “water catchment,” “composting” and others.  Organic farming and gardening practices are best learned by doing and seeing.

Currently, community outreach efforts include the “Love Garden” program (Local Organic Veggies Everyday).  Love gardens are raised bed gardens constructed for low income families and underserved organizations like the Children’s Home and the Boy’s and Girl’s Club at no charge. They may be purchased by others as well. The organic Love Gardens program includes a hand made, raised bed garden, nutrient rich soil, starter plants, seeds and training to maintain the garden.  Ongoing follow up of each garden, as well as a “train the trainer” module, are major components of this program.  Data will be collected from each new Love Garden installed, both before and during follow-up, to evaluate the effectiveness of this program.  About 25% or 56,000 Volusia County households fall within the definition of  low income and 14.1% or 70,223 of the resident’s incomes are below the poverty line. These are US Census Bureau estimates from 2008.  There is a great need in providing support to these people. 

The School Garden Partnership Program supports schools that want to develop “Outdoor Classrooms” involving all aspects of growing.  It is a wonderful program that provides our expertise in planning, installing and helping to maintain the gardens and a propagation house.  Ongoing training is provided to the key personnel, usually a few teachers, who spearhead the project.  School gardens are in big demand and the curriculum for each grade and subject is available online. 

Many people, if not most, would love to have their own family garden, especially now during hard economic times. However, Central Florida has many challenges for the organic farmer as well as the home gardener.  Many people were not born and raised here so they do not understand the challenges. Some come from up North where the growing season is well defined and understood.  Or, some people do not know how to garden and others can not afford the cost of getting started.  Here in Volusia County, planting starts in the fall (Sept-Oct) and planting continues through mid April and the main harvesting is complete by late May.  Few vegetable crops can withstand the excessive summer heat and humidity. We have overlapping seasons with variable and extreme changeable weather patterns, from tropical storms to drought, and then from excessive heat to frost and freeze.  Pressure from insects, plant disease and weeds adds to the challenge. Another big challenge is the poor quality of the soil.  In Central Florida the soil consists mainly of sand.  A well-balanced soil contains equal parts of sand, silt and clay.  A large amount of organic compost is needed to create fertile growing conditions. There is a lack of good organic compost in all of Orange, Seminole and Volusia County because only one surviving dairy farm exists to provide manure to make good compost.  Despite these many challenges, successful organic gardening and farming is feasible.  Community Roots, Inc. can provide solutions utilizing principles of community involvement, environmental conservation, sustainable growing and recycling methods.

There is a great opportunity to create a new food production and distribution system here in Central Florida.   Community Roots is leading the way by creating an organic farm (educational center) as a central hub which will support the greater community.  Today, due to soil depletion, pesticide use and long-term food storage and processing techniques, most foods are nutrient poor, toxin laden, mineral deficient, and enzyme dead. More and more consumers are demanding healthy and nutritious foods. The challenge is to develop more organic farms, more organic farmers, greater farm capacity, and a more sophisticated distribution infrastructure to meet this demand.  At the same time we need to assist the “little guy” in creating more productive home gardens. 

GOALS:

1. DEVELOPMENT

Community Roots will develop strategies to seek philanthropic and government support to help finance its growth and subsequently the growth of additional organic farms and gardens

a) Encourage federal, state, and local governments to invest in projects that promote local organic agriculture through public relations and developing effective grant proposals

b) Develop programs with private foundations and other donors who support and promote organic farming and innovative agricultural efforts affecting social and economic outcomes

c) Produce a flow of capital generated from the sale of farm related products and services

            1) Retail and wholesale sales of organic vegetables, fruit, and herbs

            2) Plant starts

            3) Sprouts/wheatgrass

            4) Compost

            5) Love gardens

            6) Educational materials

            7) Workshops

            8) Consulting

            9) Salad, sprout, and smoothie food vendor truck

d) Build a propagation house for plant starts, sprouts, pots, Love Gardens, hydroponics etc. (To be developed)

e) Make compost (to be developed) utilizing relationships with others

            1) Pick up contributions from grocers

            2) Obtain fish for fertilizer

f) Plan and landscape the farm utilizing nature, the environment, and Eco-friendly living

g) Irrigation

2. LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Community Roots will support a strong local economy

a) Identify key stakeholders in the region (farms, farmers markets, food buyers, food consumers, natural food groceries, mainstream groceries, restaurants etc.)

b) Map out economic relationships between these key stakeholders

c) Develop opportunities to create living wage “green” jobs with “hands on” training and apprenticeships

d) Support family farming and encourage opportunities for families to sell the products they grow

e) Support Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)[1]

f) Promoting, restoring, and improving Florida’s natural habitat

f) Serve as a regional center and prototype for providing expertise to enable replication of additional community organic farms

g) Provide employment for unemployed and disabled members of the community

3.  EDUCATION

Many of this and the next generation have no idea where their food comes or how to grow it. Community Roots will promote training of future organic farmers and gardeners and provide activities designed to educate the community.

a) Workshops

            1) Health and nutrition

            2) How to farm large urban property

            3) Home gardening - How to garden at home

            4) Ecologically conscious farming

            5) School gardens- “Train the trainer”

            6) Composting

7) Food production

8) Rain barrel

b) Networking services for sharing information, ideas, techniques, methods, and solutions

            1) Website and other electronic social networks

            2) Newsletter

            3) Conferences

            4) Strategic partnerships

c) Internships/apprenticeships/volunteer opportunities

            1) World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF)[2]

            2) College students from nearby universities

            3) Community service- court ordered and voluntary

d) Continuing to educate, at all levels including the children of the next generation, the importance of farming is the one way to have a positive impact

1) Educate children and teachers about the benefits of organic food and encourage school gardens

4. COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Community Roots will reach out to troubled youth, low-income families, and other struggling families to provide goods and services

a) Assisting troubled youth in the community through teaching “hands on” organic farming, business and communication skills, and self respect through hard work

b) Providing “Love Gardens” to qualified families and underserved organizations

c) Facilitating produce/vegetable swapping (to be developed)

d) Donating nutritious, fresh, food to community food pantries

5. ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION

Community Roots will build an organizational infrastructure to support the 2009-2013 strategic plan

a) Maintain part- or full-time staff for key positions

b) Recruit needed expertise for the Board of Directors

c) Develop construction plan for farm and initiate capital funding campaign

d) Each year, staff develops a month-by-month operational plan for the coming year. This will be reviewed with the Operations Manager

e) Increase compensation and benefits for staff commensurate with increases in funding

f) Develop job descriptions containing duties and responsibilities and required knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform them.

g) Develop a clear decision-making structure

6. MARKETING

Community Roots will develop an advertising and public relations program to encourage the identified target markets to purchase/grow/consume locally grown and organic food.

a) Create an Integrated Marketing Campaign strategy

b) Identify the target markets with different messages and strategies for each market

c) Create a synergy through all components of the marketing program so that every component has a consistent look, name, and is sending the same message. Elements will include:

1) Multi-media advertising campaign

2) Public Relations

3) Public events

4) Website

5) Brochure

6) Posters

7) Slide shows

8) Cable access video

9) Direct community outreach

          10) An organic food vending truck

          11) Product identification-branding

7. MONITORING AND EVALUATION

Community Roots will be primarily evaluated for the effectiveness of the implementation of the strategic plan as well as for its ability to facilitate larger community participation.

a) Maintain an e-mail list so e-mail surveys can be used to gauge effectiveness of efforts

b) Solicit feedback from various stakeholders and community, gather data, analyze, report

c) Independent consultant or trained volunteer will lead evaluation effort

d) Follow-up with recipients of low-income based Raised Love Gardens

e) Follow-up with volunteers

f) Numbers of farm participants

g) Volume of nutritious food provided to the needy