Growing Home

Our job training program splits it’s time between on-the-job training and classroom time. Program participants (interns) are trained in job readiness, nutrition, landscaping and agriculture, food systems and more.

Interns during our 2012 Job Training Program's Orientation

We need volunteers to help our job training staff with some intensive job readiness preparation on the following weeks! Volunteers will serve as interviewers during a progressive roleplay that takes place over several sessions. Volunteers will ask specific questions (prepared for you by our Employment Specialist, Brad Hirn) regarding actual jobs interns may be applying for.  After the mock interviews, volunteers will discuss their impressions and suggestions with Brad and the interns.

Week One
June 11th: Volunteer Orientation
June 13th and 14th: Mock Interview Workshops from 12:15 – 2:30pm

Week Two
June 18th: Volunteer Orientation
June 20th and 21st: Mock Interview Workshops from 12:15 – 2:30pm

If you have experience in adult education, community or labor organizing, or simply want to lend a hand in Growing Home’s training program please be in touch with us! Interviews will take place at our Wood Street Urban Farm (5814 S. Wood Street). Please email our employment training program for more information and to sign up for your preferred week. You may also call 773-434-7144 for more information about mock interview volunteering.

Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, Valerie Denney, Harry Rhodes, County President Toni Preckwinkle

On May 1st, 2012, the Cook County Commissioners passed a resolution to honor Growing Home for 10 years of implementing our mission: to operate, promote and demonstrate the use of organic agriculture as a vehicle for job training, employment and community development. Executive Director, Harry Rhodes, was on hand to accept the honor. We are so thrilled to be recognized!

May 6, 1-3 PM!

Join us at our rural farm for a celebration of spring and the start of our 2012 CSA program, where you can tour the organic farm, meet the farm team, see what’s in season, visit the farm stand, and buy your very own organic seedlings! Bring a piece of the farm back to your home and start your own little garden.

Stick around after the farm tours for ol’ timey bluegrass music by local band, The Hard Wood Boys.

The Les Brown Memorial Farm is at 2539 N. 30th Road, in Marseilles. For questions about this event call 773-549-1336 or send us an email at info@growinghomeinc.org.

Tonight is the night! Our SOLD-OUT 10th Anniversary Benefit/Birthday Party! Thank you to our sponsors and ticket-buyers for making the event possible!

Here are the details for the day:

11 a.m. Harry Rhodes, Executive Director, and Valerie Denney, Board Chair, will be at the Cook County Commissioners meeting to accept a resolution honoring Growing Home’s 10th Anniversary. (118 N. Clark St., Room 567)

6 p.m. Benefit begins!

Location: Peggy Notebaert Museum, 2430 N. Cannon Drive

Parking: Free, across the street from the Museum (Cannon Drive – ignore the one way arrow pointing out of the lot)

Cocktails at 6 p.m. Dinner at 7 p.m.

Thanks to the generosity of so many, we have a wonderful collection of silent auction items, so make sure to get there in time to peruse the tables and put in your bids! We look forward to seeing everyone there!

If you are unable to attend, you can still donate a birthday present.

The Cook County Board of Commissioners is submitting a proposed resolution on Tuesday to honor the 10th Anniversary of Growing Home.

Our Executive Director, Harry Rhodes, and our Board President, Valerie Denney, will be at the Cook County Board Meeting, located at 118 N. Clark St. Room 567, on May 1st at 10 am. Help us celebrate our 10th year by attending this meeting, or join us at our 10th Annual Benefit, also on May 1st.

Submitting a Proposed Resolution sponsored by

TONI PRECKWINKLE, Cook County Board President, and JESUS G. GARCIA, JOAN PATRICIA MURPHY, PETER N. SILVESTRI, and JEFFERY R. TOBOLSKI , Cook County Commissioners

HONORING THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF GROWING HOME’S FIRST ORGANIC FARM

WHEREAS, Growing Home is a not-for-profit social enterprise whose mission is to operate, promote, and demonstrate the use of organic agriculture as a vehicle for job training, employment, and community development.

WHEREAS, Growing Home has a transitional jobs program that targets people with multiple barriers to employment, such as homelessness, lack of education, history of substance abuse, and prior incarceration, and helps them get jobs.

WHEREAS, in 2011, Growing Home trained 35 people in two 14-week sessions, dividing their time between classroom training and hand-on, on the job horticulture training, offering participants a stipend equal to minimum wage for hours worked and studied, and providing ongoing job search support even after they graduate.

WHEREAS, many neighborhoods in Cook County are considered “food deserts” because of the difficulty that residents of these areas have in accessing affordable healthy food, particularly fruits and vegetables, and studies have repeatedly shown an irrefutable link between limited food access and poor health outcomes, particularly in the form of diet-related illnesses such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease.

WHEREAS, Growing Home is a leader in advocating for local healthy food systems and is working to transform food deserts like Englewood into food destinations by making fresh organic produce available where access to healthy food is lacking.

WHEREAS, Growing Home has access to certified organic land in Back of the Yards, owned by Su Casa Catholic Worker, a shelter for battered women and, in 2011, Growing Home donated more than 500 pounds of produce to Su Casa’s soup kitchen.

WHEREAS, this month Growing Home will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of its first farm, the Les Brown Memorial Farm, which was named after the founder of Growing Home, and is comprised of 10 acres of certified organic farm land including a residence for the farmers, a native habitat for bees and other beneficial organisms, and two large hoop houses, and even raises organically fed, free-range chickens.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Cook County Board of Commissioners does hereby recognize and honor the 10th Anniversary of Growing Home’s first farm.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT this text be spread upon the proceedings of this Honorable Body and that a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Growing Home in honor of this auspicious occasion.

About this time last week I was cruising at 39,000 feet with 150 other passengers on Southwest Flight 251. This trip from Chicago to Baltimore is one I’ve made a number of times to visit friends and family in Maryland, D.C., and Virginia- but this time it was all business! Earlier this year, I was invited to attend the National Transitional Jobs Network’s (NTJN) annual conference, “Restoring the Promise of Work, Subsidized Employment & Transitional Jobs”, in Baltimore to represent Growing Home. About 300 other professionals working with transitional employment programs, social enterprises, community based organizations, and government agencies joined me for the conference, which was focused around the best practices for helping individuals experiencing barriers to obtain and maintain unsubsidized employment.

After a delightful conversation with friendly cab driver, I arrived at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel just in time for the conference welcome, lunch, and the first session, which paid homage to a decade worth of transitional employment initiatives. In a matter of moments, I felt right at home and very excited about the conference program.

Visit NTJN on facebook to learn more.

For my first plenary session, I chose “Ensuring Transitional Jobs are More Than Just a Time-Limited Paycheck” presented by Chris Warland (NTJN) and Lili Elkins (ROCA, Inc.). The session title reminded me immediately of the goals and objectives of Growing Home’s Employment Training program to provide real–not busy–work to interns on our farms. I guess others were excited about this session too because there was standing room only! During the next hour and a half I intently listened and scribble notes on the fundamental message of the presenters that “transitional jobs should be a developmental experience for participants” all while reflecting on the many ways Growing Home has worked to ensure this.

Next, I attended a session called “Contextualized Instruction for Adults.” Over the last year Employment Training Staff has been working intently on “contextualizing” our Job Readiness, Agriculture Sciences, and Food Systems classes. This essentially means that instruction should be learner centered, built on current knowledge, provide skills that are transferable, and adapt to the specific learning styles and needs of participants. After this, I attended a plenary session on federal funding opportunities for transitional employment and a session called “Perfecting Your Pitch to Engage Employers” presented by the Chicago Jobs Council.

Not only was I fortunate enough to attend the conference, but also I also was honored to present the work of Growing Home in a workshop titled “Participants, Business and the Community: The Triple Bottom Line of Social Enterprise TJ Programs.” I sat on a panel with Samra Haider, Portfolio Director at Roberts Enterprise Development Fund (an organization that provides grants and business assistance to social enterprises) and Gregg Keesling, President for RecycleForce (a recycling social enterprise providing transitional employment). My presentation was called “Seeds of Change: Flexible TJ Program Strategies For Social Enterprises.”

The goal of my presentation was to highlight how Growing Home’s employment training program has developed in the areas of staff development, recruitment, orientation, instruction, and employer outreach as the agriculture business has grown. This growth has meant that program and production staff have had to creatively find a delicate balance between meeting the needs of a business (i.e. increasing production, sales, and quality) and the program (i.e. providing transitional employment, simulating a workplace environment to people with barriers, and experiential learning). By and large, we found that that we are able to do this by: 1) maintaining effective communication and collaboration between production and program staff; 2) recruiting high quality candidates using strength based assessment tools; 3) providing an intense two week orientation that teaches core production skills and concepts to ensure successful work; and 4) enhancing training and services to support the onsite work as well as the transition into the food preparation, landscaping, customer service, and local agriculture occupations.

After a lively dialogue between panelists and attendees I was off to the airport again. But this time I certainly was leaving with more than I arrived with: a better connection to the TJ movement, new tools for Growing Home’s program management and training staff, and an even deeper appreciation for the privilege of being a part of this organization.

-Beth Gunzel
Employment Training Manager

In an effort to get more residents to use Growing Home’s Wood Street Urban Farm as a resource, Growing Home’s Wednesdays at Wood Street is opening its’ doors to other non-profit organizations in Greater Englewood.

We are starting a new initiative at Growing Home where we are inviting community and city organizations to come share their information, recruit and/or promote events at our Open House and Farm Stand, Wednesdays at Wood Street. Imagine Englewood if…!, Black Star Project, Cook County Sherriff’s Youth Services Division, and Children’s Home + Aid are just a few of the organizations who have confirmed their attendance at our first Open House on April 18th. Each organization will have an interactive table set up to share their information with residents and those who shop the organic farm stand.

Growing Home's Wood Street Farm Stand is located at 5814 S. Wood St.

The Wood Street Farm sits across the street from a small park, and many residents and youth surround the area of the farm on nice sunny warm days. We thought this event would be an excellent time to catch these residents’ attention to not only let them know about Growing Home’s programs and produce, but to also give them the opportunity to learn about the countless other ways to get themselves and their children involved in positive community activities, programs and or jobs this spring and summer.

Organizations within Greater Englewood, or those who service residents there are always welcome to attend our Open House/ Wednesdays at Wood Street events. For more information contact Sonya Harper, Market Outreach Coordinator, at sharper@growinghomeinc.org.

Volunteer opportunity in Englewood: Sonya needs a few volunteers to help her canvass the neighborhood surrounding our urban farms. The purpose of the canvassing is to promote our Open House and Farm Stand, Wednesdays at Wood Street, and to promote our first Open House and Screening of The Interrupters. Sonya will be canvassing during the following days and times, and volunteers are invited to help for as much or as little time as they wish. Greater Englewood residents respond much better to word-of-mouth so help Sonya and our outreach team get the word out!

• Wednesday, April 11th: 11am – 2pm and 3pm – 5pm
• Thursday, April 12th: 12pm – 3pm and 4pm to 7pm
• Friday, April 13th: 10am – 1pm and 2pm – 6pm
• Saturday, April 14th: 9am – 12pm and 1pm- 4pm  and 5pm-7pm
• Sunday, April 15th: 4pm – 6pm
• Monday, April 16th: 10am – 1pm and 1pm- 4pm

Canvassing is a must, if we want to let residents know they have a great source of organic produce right in their own backyard–plus it’s affordable and grown just for them. Volunteers should email, or call (773-680-7953), Sonya with their specific times they want to work! We look forward to your assistance!

Our Community Outreach Coordinator, Seneca Kern, recently traveled through East Africa on a Bold Food Fellowship. Here are his thoughts in the experience (bonus: each link will send you to a video from Mr. Kern’s trip).

As part of the BOLDFood Professional Farming Fellowship in Food Security, I was chosen among 30 Americans and over 40 Ugandan and Kenyans to participate in an active exchange program between our three countries. I came to this experience armed with my incredible list of challenges we face bringing fresh organic produce into the Englewood community and Chicago at-large. I quickly discovered the breadth of this problem and the privilege that we Americans, even in underserved communities, possess. Rather than losing hope in the face of these problems, I recognized the tremendous opportunities we all have access to when we work together.

My first day in Kampala, Uganda brought me up close and personal with a very familiar dichotomy we have here in Chicago: Privilege and Poverty. Traversing through the “slums,” as my hosts referred to the areas where homes were made of scrap metal and plastic instead of bricks, I was beginning to feel the weight of my privilege–it’s easy to take for granted services like trash removal, intact roads, and sewage systems. However, just like the neighborhood I call home on the South Side of Chicago, EVERYONE was outside–chatting, working, laughing, playing, sleeping, arguing. You name it and there’s a good chance they were out doing it. Fruit trees and vegetable patches filled most of the walkways and once-empty spaces, competing only with the small shops and food vendors for space. While so much was surprisingly familiar, one way or another, more seemed to be happening here in a few square feet, than in a square mile back home.

Food growing on vacant land.

Our program took us through the tourist areas and government offices of Kampala, as well as, economically-deprived “slums” and rural areas in the region. The disparity would be completely disheartening if it were not for the incredible work that many intrepid and enterprising Ugandans are doing day in and day out. We toured several “Waste to Wealth” projects which are collaborative efforts between local organizations, Makarere University, government, and many residents looking to improve their lives and those around them. They were responsible for innovations with using waste to create cheaper, longer -lasting, less polluting and more sustainable  charcoal briquettes, and creating a highly nutritious animal feed from banana peels –which take up nearly 70% of the waste stream. We also had a visit to a sack garden yielding hundreds of pounds of fresh food in a very small space. We visited the University’ learning farm and saw countless innovations improving the quality and lives of the plants, animals and humans alike. Visits to several markets (city, rural, jungle, and lakeside) showed the huge variety and quantity of food that Ugandans  thrive on, and pinpoint sales and distribution channels.

While we experienced a week without internet and the occasional period when both power was out (a once every 2 or so day occurrence) and the generator was turned off, our experience at the hotel was much closer to that of a foreign tourist or wealthy Ugandan. The contrast with our local tours and homestays really helped to hammer home how lucky, even we lowly farmers are to not only have this opportunity, but to have the infrastructure and access to resources that we do. At my home stay I traveled many miles outside of Kampala to Nzu. Here I was greeted by the countless orphans, their hosts and local folks, many of whom made their living through agriculture. Through work with AFIRD (Organization for Rural Development), many residents were involved in co-ops creating herbal soap for individuals with HIV, fruit juice concentrate and fruit wine. I also witnessed the power of Biogas: a process in which excrement from cows and humans is used to create light and cooking fuel! Here as well as in Kampala, we were exposed to many folks that were economically poor, but in a much greater sense, some of the most wealthy I’d ever met.

Seneca Kern (second from right) is the co-founder of WeFarm America and Growing Home's Community Outreach Coordinator.

The final leg of my journey brought me to an orphanage in Mombasa that was gardening and raising chickens for food and planning a major greenhouse build in the coming months. A rabbit, chicken and vegetable farm in government housing in Nairobi (I witnessed and recorded a rabbit being slaughtered, then promptly ate it – delicious and not surprisingly very similar to chicken), was next. A huge greenhouse built by hand, producing thousands of pounds of organic (a term rarely used and in this case, unmarked) produce for the nation-wide supermarket chain in the outskirts of Nairobi. Cows, goats, chicken and produce on a small plot in the suburbs of Nairobi. And finally a beautiful pastoral farm in the extremely arid conditions of Maasai land, where traditional herdsman livelihoods have been passed down for countless generations and many aspects of the culture remained largely intact (however this was changing rapidly).

Mr. Kern traveled through Uganda and Kenya.

East Africa is unlike any place I’d ever been. Each country with its own character, set of problems and people itching to solve them. With distinct foods, traditions, histories, worldviews, and overall style, one could spend a lifetime digging through the layers of complexity that make Uganda and Kenya what they are. Warm, beautiful, fertile of soil and of people, pre-existing conflicts, the long-term effects of colonialism, and the byproducts of development create a set of challenges that no other people would face with such strength, grace and large smiles. Bittersweet is the only word that continued to pop into my mind as I experienced this part of the world. And as I return home, here to Chicago, never have I ever felt so emboldened by the incredible amounts of great and powerful things we have the capacity to do, with a fraction of the effort it would take in many other places. For the first time I truly felt there were no longer any excuses. In that understanding rests my strength and eternal gratitude to the first home we ever had – Africa.

It’s less than a month until our biggest event of the year! In honor of our job training program’s 10th year we are throwing ourselves a birthday party!

When: May 1st, cocktail hour starts at 6pm

Where: The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum – 2430 N. Cannon Drive in Lincoln Park

Dinner: Hors d’oeuvres by Majani Catering, appetizer by Sunday Dinner, entrées by Bistro Campagne, and cupcakes by Emma’s Kitchen.

Tickets: Available now through our partner Eventbrite.

Who: Keynote address by Steve James, Producer and Director of the award winning movies, Hoopdreams and The Interrupters. Remarks by Wendy C., Growing Home Job Training Graduate, 2011

The event will also feature an exciting silent auction, with certificates and gifts from the Laugh Factory, Organic Valley, August Hill Winery, Big Jones, and more. 100% of proceeds from the event, which is sponsored by Healthy Dining Chicago, Goodness Greeness, Boeing, Laurus Strategies, Organic Valley, Goose Island, Doug and Jesse MacDonald, Richard and Judith Rhodes, Candid Wines, Big Bowl, Builders Bank, and Dana Hirt, will go to support our job training and outreach programs.

Free screening of the award winning film, The Interrupters: April 18th, 4pm at the Wood Street Urban Farm (5814 S. Wood St.)

We are very happy to have Steve James joining us for our birthday event. The Interrupters landed on many “Ten Best” lists for 2011 including Time, The New Yorker, The Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, LA Times and Slate, which called it “the most essential film of the year.” As a lead up to our Birthday Party we are excited to screen The Interrupters at our Wood Street Urban Farm on April 18th. The movie tells the story of three “violence interrupters” in Chicago, all of whom are former gang members working to protect their communities by breaking the cycle of violence.

Join us from 1-4pm for farm tours, garden workshops, an organic farm stand and more. The screening will start at 4pm. Following the film, violence interrupters, Li’l Mikey and Hot Rod, will start a community discussion. For more information, or to reserve your spot at the April 18th screening, please email our outreach department.

Most of the produce for our Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program is grown, harvested and processed at our Les Brown Memorial Farm near Marseilles, IL. Any produce not grown at this site is grown at one of our urban farms in Chicago. Our farmers use only certified organic growing practices, and farm seasonally and responsibly. In addition our CSA Program offers individuals in our job training program opportunities to gain on-the-job training in an organic farming context.

This week IL Valley Life is offering an amazing deal on our Spring CSA Shares in Marsellies.

If you have any questions about this deal, or if you bought a CSA Share through IL Valley Life and want to register, please call 773-549-1336 or send us an email. We’ll be happy to help!