GrowGood operates a 1.5-acre regenerative urban farm in Southeast Los Angeles, adjacent to The Salvation Army’s Bell Shelter, one of the largest homeless shelters in the US.
Located in a heavy industrial area, GrowGood’s Bell Farm is the only green space accessible to the public for miles around. What was once a vacant lot is now a flourishing farm that features a ½-acre of vegetable crops, an orchard with 70 fruit trees, a cut-flower garden, a commercial greenhouse, and community ... Read More
GrowGood operates a 1.5-acre regenerative urban farm in Southeast Los Angeles, adjacent to The Salvation Army’s Bell Shelter, one of the largest homeless shelters in the US.
Located in a heavy industrial area, GrowGood’s Bell Farm is the only green space accessible to the public for miles around. What was once a vacant lot is now a flourishing farm that features a ½-acre of vegetable crops, an orchard with 70 fruit trees, a cut-flower garden, a commercial greenhouse, and community gathering spaces. GrowGood has developed holistic nature-based programming purposefully designed to address the grave challenges faced by individuals who are experiencing homelessness and other challenges by assisting them along the path to stability and self-sufficiency.
Our three core program areas are:
(1) Food Distribution: On a weekly basis we donate produce to the neighboring Bell Shelter Kitchen, as well as weekly produce bags for Permanent Supportive Housing Residents. We also sell produce to our mission-aligned partners, markets who accept SNAP/EBT, and restaurants who support our work through awareness campaigns.
(2) Workforce Development: Our 300-hour Urban Agriculture Training Program is for individuals with multiple barriers to employment including homelessness/housing instability, justice-involvement, co-occurring disorders, and age. Through the program, individuals are able to select a career pathway, and gain more specialized skills and experience in specific areas such as: enterprise/sales, general operations, greenhouse, landscaping/gardening. We are also in the process of launching informal apprenticeships with urban ag and ag-supported businesses (such as local markets that sell our produce) to provide additional on-the-job experience beyond the farm for our trainees.
(3) Wellness Programming: we have created a comprehensive wellness program, Food for Life, that uses the farm as a facilitator in healing. The nature-based mindfulness classes help individuals heal from the impacts of trauma, and reduce depression, anxiety, and anger.
We also offer a variety of community programs and events including a monthly Farm Market with free family-friendly activities, community volunteer events, and workshops.
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