Despite the end of the class, we decided we want return to visit Sam and help him set up this new CSA drop-site if at all possible. We don't think we would be able to deal with the logistics (exact times for delivery, money, etc) but because we have been in contact with a rep from the farm, we may be able to facilitate the process of getting everything good to go. For the time being, we left him the sign-up sheet we made and a bunch of spare fliers in hopes that over the next week, he can chat up a few more customers into joining in, as well. We'll see what happens...
If you want to see more of the pictures from our project, here they are. Enjoy!
Monday, December 7, 2009
Brief Encounters
A couple memorable quotes from passing:
While walking from USF, when asked if he knew the corner store owner:
“Oh Sam? The guy with the good wine and beer selection?”
Someone who’s been using a CSA for four months:
“The summer harvest was so much tastier than anything from the grocery store. Right now in the winter it’s been a little redundant, so we’re having to get creative, making lots of soups..”
From a man who used to work at Farm Fresh to You, another CSA who delivers to the city:
“I just got fired for some bullshit, so I’m definitely interested in joining your cause.”
An old man in passing:
“I hope this thing goes geometric. I support you guys.”
From a USF undergrad student who lives near the store:
“This neighborhood is into that kind of stuff!”
From a man who lives a couple houses down:
“I’m down for anything that’s local!”
From a random local guy while walking into the store:
“This is my man! If Sam trusts you guys, I’m in!”
Sam: “Are you just signing up for the hell of it?”
From an older gentlemen:
“Good luck! I’m from Danville...I grow my own stuff.”
From various males we spoke to in the store:
“Do you have a flier, I have to ask my girlfriend.”
"Do you have a flier, I have to ask my wife."
...see a connection? haha
While walking from USF, when asked if he knew the corner store owner:
“Oh Sam? The guy with the good wine and beer selection?”
Someone who’s been using a CSA for four months:
“The summer harvest was so much tastier than anything from the grocery store. Right now in the winter it’s been a little redundant, so we’re having to get creative, making lots of soups..”
From a man who used to work at Farm Fresh to You, another CSA who delivers to the city:
“I just got fired for some bullshit, so I’m definitely interested in joining your cause.”
An old man in passing:
“I hope this thing goes geometric. I support you guys.”
From a USF undergrad student who lives near the store:
“This neighborhood is into that kind of stuff!”
From a man who lives a couple houses down:
“I’m down for anything that’s local!”
From a random local guy while walking into the store:
“This is my man! If Sam trusts you guys, I’m in!”
Sam: “Are you just signing up for the hell of it?”
From an older gentlemen:
“Good luck! I’m from Danville...I grow my own stuff.”
From various males we spoke to in the store:
“Do you have a flier, I have to ask my girlfriend.”
"Do you have a flier, I have to ask my wife."
...see a connection? haha
Lights, Camera, ACTION!
Yesterday, we spent a couple hours hanging out with Sam in his store with our cardboard posters in hand and fliers ready to pass out. After our attempt to get government funding fell out the window, we came up with a new idea to bring the community together in the name of produce at Sam's store: getting the neighborhood interested in joining a CSA. A CSA is community supported agriculture, and it's essentially setting up a deal with a local farm to have boxes of local, organic produce delivered weekly to a certain drop-site. We came in contact with a farm in Sacramento Valley called Eatwell Farm that was very interested in getting us and the neighborhood involved. We were to find 10 people who were interested in joining the CSA in order to create a new drop-site. Our idea was to create this new drop-site at Sam's store, and while he wouldn't be able to personally sell the produce, neighbors would have to come to his store to pick up their goods, which would potentially roll in some business.
We walked from our campus to the store at Divisadero and McCallister, holding up our signs as we went. Ask me about CSA's! and Want fresh, local, seasonal produce? We got a reaction out of a couple passerbys. "Oh, should I ask you?!"
Once we got to the store--technically called Save More Market, but "Sam's store" to everyone else--we set up shop with our fliers and posters, explaining to Sam what we planned to do for the afternoon. He was very excited to get the ball rolling on this project, and stood outside in the rain with us, waving to the people he knew who drove by and asked everyone who came to the store, "Have you heard of this CSA thing?" We found that this tactic worked; despite the fact that Sam couldn't tell his customers much about the whole thing, because they usually knew and trusted him made people more willing to listen to what we had to say.
All-in-all, we had a fun afternoon at the store. We talked to numerous people, sparked interest in a couple (unfortunately only getting 5 of the 10 we needed), and learned a lot about Sam and his local clientele. I still can't believe that he is the sole employee at his store, spending each and every day there from around noon to as late as 2am on weekends. He doesn't mind at all though, his customers keep him company and when I asked him if he gets cold with the door open all the time, he simply said "he's used to it." Such an adorable man who is truly respected by his neighborhood--how many times do people drive by and yell "happy birthday" out the window to store owners? And because of his genuine interest, we plan to return to visit and help him get this running, despite the fact that the class will be over.
csa flier
We walked from our campus to the store at Divisadero and McCallister, holding up our signs as we went. Ask me about CSA's! and Want fresh, local, seasonal produce? We got a reaction out of a couple passerbys. "Oh, should I ask you?!"
Once we got to the store--technically called Save More Market, but "Sam's store" to everyone else--we set up shop with our fliers and posters, explaining to Sam what we planned to do for the afternoon. He was very excited to get the ball rolling on this project, and stood outside in the rain with us, waving to the people he knew who drove by and asked everyone who came to the store, "Have you heard of this CSA thing?" We found that this tactic worked; despite the fact that Sam couldn't tell his customers much about the whole thing, because they usually knew and trusted him made people more willing to listen to what we had to say.
All-in-all, we had a fun afternoon at the store. We talked to numerous people, sparked interest in a couple (unfortunately only getting 5 of the 10 we needed), and learned a lot about Sam and his local clientele. I still can't believe that he is the sole employee at his store, spending each and every day there from around noon to as late as 2am on weekends. He doesn't mind at all though, his customers keep him company and when I asked him if he gets cold with the door open all the time, he simply said "he's used to it." Such an adorable man who is truly respected by his neighborhood--how many times do people drive by and yell "happy birthday" out the window to store owners? And because of his genuine interest, we plan to return to visit and help him get this running, despite the fact that the class will be over.
csa flier
Meet Sam!
We met Sam rather unexpectedly...
When we first started thinking about this project in terms of helping neighborhoods through the lense of food, our minds immediately turned to the Tenderloin as an area in need. One weekend, Sarah was walking toward the TL and noticed the intersection of Divisadero and McCallister had four convenience stores, one on each corner. This was not something you see everywhere, so she decided to step in and talk to a couple of the owners, all of different types of stores, including a dollar store, an organic market, and two other corner stores. Making the rounds, she made a connection with Sam and his store right off the bat, as he showed much interest in our school project and already had the idea in mind to find a way to get produce in his store.
The location (as you can see...there is not a shortage of stores on this block!)
View Larger Map
After I met with Sam, I learned that he thought the best way we could help him was by getting him money for a refrigerator to keep his produce fresh. We began doing research on Bill 2384, or the Healthy Purchase Pilot Program, which encourages store owners to keep fresh produce by giving them extra funding for advertising and refrigeration systems. Sadly, we have yet to figure out if Sam qualifies for this funding or not. We plan on continuing to research this bill and hopefully help Sam get the money he needs to get the refrigerator because he definitely deserves it!
As we've noted, our original plans didn't quite work out the way we wanted them to, but on the bright side we were forced to come up with another way to encourage Sam's community to eat more local, fresh produce by hopefully setting up a CSA at his store.
I just have to mention that this entire project really wouldn't have been the same if we hadn't gotten to work with Sam. He was totally understanding and encouraging every time we went in to talk to him about our project. I got to see him interact with lots of customers, and even though he's only owned this corner store for a little over a year and a half, he knows almost everyone by name.
Our Justice League
A couple details...
Justice League: PACHAMAMA, inspired by the goddess from the Andes who presides over planting/harvesting and know to cause earthquakes.
Members: Anyone! What would happen if we were are all our own superheroes?
Personal Superheroes:
Sarah: The Human-interaction-sparks-positive-change woman
Lindsay: Latività, or essentially the master of tasks
Back story: What would your neighborhood look like if everyone was their own superhero?
Common good: Small changes can make a big difference in a community! Everybody deserves fresh, affordable, healthy produce. Just by talking to members of Sam's neighborhood about setting up a CSA, we were helping get the community thinking about buying fresh, local produce!
Everyone has at least one weakness:
Sarah: Lots of good ideas, but no action
Lindsay: Take on too many things at once, never enough time to finish
Arch enemy: Big impersonal corporations and people who want change and take no action
Costume: Wearing your one lucky clothing item. (For example, Sarah feels lucky when she wears my striped knitted hat that you see in the pictures because she got it from Morocco from a master hat maker, so she always wore it when she went to work at Sam's store)
Theme Song: "With a Little Help From My Friends" by the Beatles
WANT TO JOIN? CHECK OUT OUR APPLICATION
Superhero Application
WANT TO JOIN? CHECK OUT OUR APPLICATION
Superhero Application
Initial Thoughts
When people ask about our project we usually tell them it's for our design class at USF. We then go on to explain that it's a Superhero project... Basically, we were asked to come up with a Justice League and all its components, including the members, back story, common good, weaknesses, and more. At the same time, we had to come up with a site we could physically work with to create change what would hopefully coincide with our common good. At first we created fake superheroes with names like "Pricecutter," "Freshmaster," and "The Friendly Neighborhood Man" but they didn't seem to really fit in with what we were trying to do. By the end of the projec,t we that what we really liked was the idea that anyone can be a superhero and that we are essentially our own superheroes. In other words, we don't need someone else to come in and save the day; the small changes we make in our communities can make a difference.
One thing that inspired us to work on making fresh produce more available in corner stores from Sarah's experience studying abroad in Morocco and remembering how amazing Morocco's produce markets are. The host family that I lived with for five months had very little food in their refrigerator because every night we would go and get fresh food from our neighborhood market to cook with. Most neighborhoods in middle class areas of cities in Morocco have their own markets like the one I went to every night. When we started working on this project I started wondering why the U.S., or at least parts of California, haven't adopted markets like the ones in Morocco. Just imagine what a different life style we could have if our corner stores were stocked full of fresh fruits and vegetables.
CHECK OUT THESE LINKS
A couple things that inspired some interest in us....
How to increase produce in your local corner store
Lack of Produce Gets Fresh Approach VIDEO!!!
Bill AB2384 (Healthy Purchase Pilot) Learn More!
The Actual Bill-COOL!
A Letter from Michael Pollan to President Obama About Food
Super Market Campaign: Improving access to supermarkets in underserved communities
Designed for Disease: The Link Between Local Food Environments and Obesity and Diabetes
Eatwell Farm (The CSA we are working with)
Neighbors Project
How to increase produce in your local corner store
Lack of Produce Gets Fresh Approach VIDEO!!!
Bill AB2384 (Healthy Purchase Pilot) Learn More!
The Actual Bill-COOL!
A Letter from Michael Pollan to President Obama About Food
Super Market Campaign: Improving access to supermarkets in underserved communities
Designed for Disease: The Link Between Local Food Environments and Obesity and Diabetes
Eatwell Farm (The CSA we are working with)
Neighbors Project
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