Future Baltimore Launches Initiative to Ease Food Deserts in West Baltimore
Future Baltimore, a flagship partnership for West Baltimore between Bon Secours Baltimore Health System, Kaiser Permanente, the Anchor Group and other community partners, will launch a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program on Saturday, May 4th along with a new mobile market service to provide residents with better access to healthy, nutritious foods.
The first phase of the initiative, the CSA program, will be available for families living in the 21223 zip code. Participating families will receive fresh produce from Bon Secours Community Works’ Urban Farm and Community Garden, every week. Additionally, the families can participate in a variety of activities to learn about healthy eating and fresh produce including an education day with the farmers to see and learn more about where the produce comes from as well as cooking and education classes to learn how to prepare the produce in healthy, tasty recipes. The Future Baltimore team will also visit the families’ kitchens to show them how to use items they already have at home to prepare recipes with the produce. Currently, 75 families from West Baltimore are enrolled in the program; many of whom were referred by local partners such as schools, churches and Bon Secours Community Works. These programs are intended to ease access to healthy foods for families who are experiencing food insecurity and have limited transportation to grocery stores and places where fresh, nutritious foods are available.
Following the launch of the CSA program, Future Baltimore will activate a mobile market—a social enterprise that will become a sustainable produce source for West Baltimore. The market will make produce from Bon Secours’ urban farm and the Maryland Food Bank available to community members at cost or a discounted rate.
WHAT: Future Baltimore launches CSA program and Mobile Market
WHERE: Bon Secours Community Works
26 N. Fulton St.
Baltimore, MD 21223
WHEN: Saturday, May 4, 2019
12:00 – 3:00 PM
PHOTO OPS: Families receiving fresh produce from the CSA
Mobile market
Bon Secours Community Works’ urban farm
Residents enjoying food tastings and demonstrations
Farm staff and resident meet and greet
AVAILABLE FOR
INTERVIEWS: Maha Sampath, Interim Executive Director, Community Works
Timothy Douglas, Urban Farmer
Destiny-Simone Ramjohn, Ph.D., Director of Community Health,
Kaiser Permanente
Community Member who receives free produce delivery
MEDIA
CONTACTS: Jamie Watt Arnold, PROFILES, (410) 243-3790 or jamie@profilespr.com.
On-site: Judith Carmichael, Bon Secours, (410) 371-4142
About Bon Secours Baltimore Health System:
Bon Secours Baltimore Health System (BSHSI) serves the west Baltimore Community with a comprehensive array of services including a 69 bed acute care hospital with medical and surgical services, comprehensive behavioral health services, same day surgery, imaging, an outpatient dialysis program, over 25 thousand emergency department visits a year, more than 4,300 discharges annually, over 800 affordable housing units in six senior and three family housing communities, numerous community outreach programs for men, women, expectant mothers, children, teenagers and seniors. More than 760 people are employed by Bon Secours Baltimore Health System. The mission of the Health System is to provide compassionate, quality health care and to be “Good Help®” to those in need in west Baltimore. For more information visit: www.bonsecours.com/baltimore
About Kaiser Permanente:
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve more than 12.2 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists, and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery, and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education, and the support of community health. In the Mid-Atlantic States, Kaiser Permanente provides and coordinates complete health care services for more than 770,000 members through 30 medical centers in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit about.kp.org or follow us on Twitter, or Facebook.