LEJ grows next generation of environmentalists

Anthony Khalil works with youth and volunteers
at the LEJ nursery at Candlestick Park.  Photo: Footprints

Volunteerism is driving grassroots change in Bayview Hunters Point.  Literacy for Environmental Justice has shared that "over 1900 loyal volunteers and students collectively invested 10,000 hours to restoring local ecology...."

 

That's important, not just because there's work needing done (they've grown over 10,000 plants at the new wetlands at Yosemite Slough), but because the volunteers themselves can have meaningful, even transformative experiences.  Here's what two LEJ youth have said:

 

"I liked how we had a chance to work with youth of the Bayview neighborhood and we all got the chance of working together to do something positive.”  - Renneka Jones LEJ Youth Intern

 

“I improved my communication skills, gardening skills, public speaking skills, and also my follow-through skills.” - Jose Jimenez LEJ Youth Intern

Gay for Good leave neighbors in awe

A volunteer service group called Gay for Good returned to Bayview Saturday, and left neighbors in awe of how much work got done.

Nearly 60 volunteers worked with a dozen neighbors to weed, mulch and prune the landmark Quesada Garden into seasonal shape.  A second Nourishmat garden was installed in the center section of the garden, along with planting beds constructed with bricks re-purposed from a neighbor's old chimney.

Over 15 yards of compost was dropped off on Friday, by Recology, in support of the volunteer effort.  On Monday, a friend of Quesada who works for the City came by to pick up green waste.

Bayview's gardening community hosts Gay for Good, Saturday

Community-minded volunteers from the service organization Gay for Good will be at the Quesada Gardens in the heart of San Francisco’s Bayview neighborhood on Saturday, August 17th from 9am until 12:30pm.  (Meet-up on the 1700 block of Quesada, just west of 3rd Street.)

“Gay for Good moves mountains,” said organizer Steve Carp when he learned his group would be facing a mountain of mulch needing spread throughout Bayview’s showcase urban gardens on Quesada Avenue and 3rd Street.

Volunteers will also build retaining walls and planting beds to create a new educational hub that Bayview residents have designed for a portion of their garden. That hub already includes a demonstration Nourishmat from Earth Starter that helps new gardeners understand the square-foot gardening model. New herb beds, a composter, and a community posting board are next.

Hundreds of people each year visit the series of community-generated projects, known as Quesada Gardens, to learn about grassroots community building in urban cores like Bayview Hunters Point. Not all of them get their hands as dirty as Gay for Good volunteers are likely to on Saturday.

“We are delighted that Gay for Good is coming back to Bayview,” said Quesada Gardens’ organizer Jeffrey Betcher. “I love how they connect the benefits of networking within a social or cultural group to the kind of place-based community building that Quesada Gardens does.”

The Quesada Gardens Initiative has been growing gardens, gathering spaces and public art projects in the heart of San Francisco’s Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood since 2002. The grassroots group hopes that one day everyone in the neighborhood will know their neighbors.

Gay for Good – San Francisco aims to energize and mobilize the LGBT community to provide community service. Each month, the group selects a different non-profit to be the beneficiary of its volunteerism.

Bain & Company returns to Bayview's gardens

Volunteers from Bain & Company returned for a second time, on Friday August 9th, to pull and bag weeds, pick up litter, and prune back unruly plants.

The organizers at the Quesada and Bridgeview Gardens in the heart of San Francisco's Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood needed help clearing portions of the gardens on Quesada Avenue between 3rd Street and Newhall as they prepare for another volunteer day this Saturday when mulch will be spread.

"What a friendly and hardworking group of volunteers," Bridgeview Garden Project Leader Mary McClure said of the Bain & Company visitors.

Annual volunteerism is part of Bain & Company's commitment to social impact in the San Francisco Bay Area, according to the company's website.

The organizers at the Quesada and Bridgeview Gardens in the heart of San Francisco's Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood really loved the help and warm group spirit.

What exactly are these things growing from the sides of palm trees?  The mini-ecosystem on Quesada raised all sorts of good questions.

Overcast skies dominated the morning.  But the friendly volunteers from Bain made it seem like a sunny day from start to finish.

The garden's soil is pretty hard now, and doesn't give up weeds easily.  Shovels, rakes, and elbow grease carried the day!

The Canary Island Date Palm trees shelter several volunteers.  Mick, pictured weeding, was at the gardens last year when Bain & Company helped out.  Thanks, Mick!!

The heliotrope on Quesada got some friendly attention.

Mary McClure, Bridgeview Garden leader, talks with Franklin, a Bayview neighbor and avid gardener.

Rahul Golani did the organizing on the Bainies side of the partnership.  Thanks, Rahul.  Come back any time!

 

Bayview Footprints welcomes contributors

Contributors to Bayview Footprints Local News are people who live, work, study or play in Bayview Hunters Point.  Send your brief articles, images and videos about life in the neighborhood to info@QuesadaGardens.org.








Want to be a regular contributor?  Some neighbors send content on a regular basis.  We love it!  An individual neighbor or group of neighbors can act as “reporters” on specific topics.  If you or your group would like to do that, here are some suggestions: 

Include an image in jpeg, .png, .tif, or .gif format with as high resolution as possible.

Include lots of links to additional online information. We’ll embed them into your online article.

Maintain a BVHP community focus. We always prioritize what is happening here, and the people who live, work, study and play here.

Avoid being promotional of a particular organization or event. Submit event notices for the Community Calendar section at www.BayviewCalendar.org.

Keep it positive but not “fluffy.” Footprints tells the positive story about Bayview Hunters Point that is left out elsewhere. At the same time, readers want useful information and perspective, and expect us to acknowledge obvious challenges. 
 
Avoid opinion pieces. Your perspective will shine through the content you choose, and the style you use! However, Footprints does not take positions on specific public policy, legislation, or candidates.

Appeal to our extraordinary diversity. If you can write in Spanish or Chinese, go for it!

Consider creative concepts like top-10 lists, opinion polls, side-bar resource lists, etc.


Example of a regular contributor’s topic:  Sustainability:  The positive ways BVHP residents can lead environmentally sustainable lives at home while creating a sustainable planet.  Features might include pictures of resident-led green projects, links to new studies BVHP residents should know about, Q&A conversations with  BVHP environmental leaders, and a top-10 list about the history of sustainable practices in BVHP.

Brandon Oldham embarks on life of service

"Now we’ve become the voices that will carry the positive image of the Bayview Community."

That is the conclusion of the report from one University of San Francisco service-learning group after finishing several months of their Quesada Gardens experience.  The report was part of the curriculum in Professor Dayle Smith's business class authored by Adriana Goiricelaya, Tom Munka, Zibo Guo, Jiabo Wu and Fengrong Bian.  

Tom (pictured, far left) took the lead on installing a new sign at the Quesada Garden.  That sign has already become a distinctive feature of the expansive community project.  Others in the group helped with jam-making, gardening and taking inventory of Quesada Gardens T-shirts and tote bags.  Thank you Adriana! (pictured, 2nd from left).  

Students from Professor Kevin Lo's class were also hard at work the past several months, working alongside gardeners while also giving thought to innovative product-marketing strategies. Thank you James Elizarraz, Nicolas Smith, Alex Kaye and Jiaxi Wang!

Creating change at the local level is something some students might learn about in the classroom.  These students became drivers of change, connecting academic learning with practical experience.

  

Robyn Brault (center picture) spoke at the Cinco de Mayo event Quesada Gardens Initiative held at the Bridgeview Teaching and Learning Garden (which rose from a rocky hillside with LOTS of help from USF students and faculty, including Annette Smith and Karl Paige Community Hero award-winner Professor Seth Wachtel).  Robyn Brault talked about a concept she learned in Professor Erin Brigham's Catholic Social Thought class.  Quesada Gardens is "subsidiarity" in practice, she said.  Changing the world where we live is what Quesada Gardens is all about.

One student has been working hard through the USF service-learning program, which is administered through the Leo T. McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good, for over three years.  Brandon Oldham (top picture, left) has been an Advocate for Community Engagement, the student bridge between the community and university.

Like Professor Wachtel, Brandon received the Annette Smith and Karl Paige Community Hero Award from Quesada Gardens Initiative.  He also won the Public Service Award from the McCarthy Center, as well as Excellence in Leadership and Service Award.

 

Brandon just graduated, but is already planning to return to Bayview to continue work he started as a student.

  

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.

Easter on Latona focuses on healthy community

The health-minded Latona Community Garden group has organized an Easter event that would make the Easter bunny proud.

Egg decorating? You bet. Games, face painting, arts and crafts? Yup, yup and yup!

But why not a composting demonstration, or seed library swap, or maybe even planting something fun with young gardeners? Yup again! That's how they do on Latona.

With help from Quesada Gardens friends, a unique celebration of a special place and the people who love it is set for Saturday March 30th from 11am to 2pm at the garden on Latona and Thornton just above 3rd Street.

"It's time to plan your summer garden, and what better way to start than by sharing seeds and stories with your fellow gardeners," said seed swapper Jennifer Gorospe.

Jennifer invites you to "bring seeds that you have saved (or excess purchased seeds), along with a few empty envelopes, and trade vegetable, fruit and flower seeds."

The San Francisco Chapter of Links will be there with information about food pathways of the African Diaspora, and a healthy food pantry shopping list.  SF Links and Quesada Gardens Initiative partnered to install a food producing garden at Cornerstone Missionary Baptist Church.

Angelique Tompkins and Marcus Harvey have been organizing "Spring in the Garden" with youth and families in mind. They are mixing traditional Easter fun with gardening activities. The Girls 2000 program from Hunters Point Family, SEFA Food Guardians, SF Environment, Seed Library SF, University of San Francisco and other allies will be on hand.

The group is 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.

Hot tip! Creating an Easter "twofer," Footprints Member India Basin Neighborhood Association, is also hosting an event on Saturday. The group's annual Easter Egg Hunt is set for 11am sharp. Meet on Hunters Point Boulevard between Evans and Innes.