Spring visits Latona Community Garden

A Spring shower was flirtatious.  But it soon gave way to blue Bayview sky as Easter and Spring were celebrated in the Latona Community Garden on Saturday, March 30th. The garden is one of the Quesada Gardens Initiative's network of community projects.  

Angelique Tompkins, pictured below with Rose Toney, was a lead organizer for the event.  Her neighbors, Marcus Harvey, Liz Kopp, Jordan Morrison, and Meadow Sylvester worked hard to make the garden celebration fun, educational, healthy and spirited.

The first caretakers of the unique community space on Latona and Thornton, who moved north a couple of years ago, surprised everyone by traveling back.  Peter Haas and Rhonda Winter are Latona heroes, wherever they happen to be living.

These images provide just a glimpse of a gathering that showcased Bayview's prized diversity and shared commitment to community.

Angelique and Rose as Peter looks on.

Ashley contributes to a painting that Shawn, the facilitating artist, started.

Ava learns about worm composting

Belva Davis helped represent the SF Chapter of Links.

Crafty neighbors set up beneath the Latona walnut tree

Brandi from Girls 2000 shares a bit about why her work is so important

Liz Kopp (2nd from left) created sustainable egg dyes from beets, blueberries and other natural ingredients

Girls 2000 kept busy tending and planting in the raised beds at Latona

A touch of glitter at the crafts table

Jennifer Gorospe brought the Seed Library and the concept of seed-swapping to the event

John helped out his Mom, Angelique, with event prep and video documentation

Organizer Jordan supported Rose at the healthy food table where fruit and yoghurt parfaits and Angelique's chicken salad sandwiches were huge hits

Supervisor Malia Cohen came by to connect with old friends...

...and many new ones

Marin gets a feline makeover

Menhuam Ayele showed what the spirit of working the land is all about

Mishwa Lee took the compost oath ... "again," she said.  Mishwa leads the Northridge Cooperative Housing Project Community Garden, and in 1970 helped set up one of the first recycling operations in Petaluma. 

The SF Chapter of Links promoted healthy eating from an African American perspective

The Tabios family opened their umbrella for a few minutes while the garden took a drink of water.  Mariano Tabios is a Quesada Gardens Initiative Board Member

Rhonda Winter shows her canine friend around the garden she helped start as partner Peter Haas looks on

Peter seems pleased that the garden has been maintained by the community

Shaharil made the trek from the Hult International Business School to talk about helping QGI with business planning

The SF Wholesale Produce Market donated fresh produce for the event at the Latona Garden

Shawn Bullen paints a message to Irene Molinari, a Latona elder

Marcus Harvey, a Latona leader, enjoys the garden he has helped grow

Quesada Gardens Initiative and everyone involved with the Latona Community Garden wish to thank the San Francisco Chapter of Links for sharing information about food pathways of the African Diaspora, the Girls 2000 program from Hunters Point Family, SEFA Food Guardians, SF Environment, Seed Library SF, and service-learners from the University of San Francisco.

The group is also grateful to Kaiser Permanente San Francisco, Rainbow Grocery Cooperative: A Worker Owned Collective, the SF Wholesale Produce Market, Fresh and Easy, Home Depot, Foods Co, Comfort Foods National, and Flowercraft Garden Center for critical support.