Holiday Harvest Boxes for Families in Need

Over 100 families have identified themselves as food insecure this holiday season. Mountain Roots believes that we all deserve a delicious, nourishing meal every time we sit down at the table, and especially at the Holidays. This season, Mountain Roots is teaming up with local growers and producers to provide a Holiday Feast to these families experiencing food insecurity. Each family will receive a curated box of locally-grown vegetables, organic fruit, a local, pasture-raised chicken, and more. The boxes are delivered to their doorstep so that recipients can prepare a special meal for their family on Thanksgiving and again in December. These boxes come at no charge to the family, but they come with a cost of $50 per box. How many family’s will you sponsor this Holiday Season?

The Holiday Harvest Meal Boxes described above are just one of our Food Security initiatives. All year long, staff and volunteers collect and sort produce to pack into fresh food boxes that are then distributed to households in need all year round. Within the Food Security program are also Cooking Matters classes - a curriculum designed to educate families about cooking whole foods on a Food Stamps budget. Our Food Security team also cultivates three community gardens where community members come to learn self-sufficiency by way of growing their own food and connecting to the land. The produce grown in these gardens is distributed to volunteers and families experiencing food insecurity.

Another initiative of Mountain Roots Food Project is our Regenerative Agriculture program. Each season we offer up to a dozen beginning farmers hands-on training and experience practicing growing methods that keep moisture and nutrients in the soil while sequestering carbon from the air. The nutrient-rich produce grown on our two small farms goes to 140 CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) shareholders, feeding hundreds of people fresh, delicious, locally-grown food and keeping over $140,000 in our local economy this year alone.

The third focus of our food systems initiative is education. During the school year our team of Farm to School environmental educators provide STEM-aligned and nutrition and environmental science education to over 2,000 students throughout the Gunnison Watershed School District. After school, students participate in our garden clubs and Kids Cook! courses, classes designed to get kids cooking healthy meals and snacks for themselves and their families.

During the summer months the Farm to School team offers a variety of summer camps that bring kids outside to connect with nature and experience the world around them. Kids visit farms, learn to identify local plants, get to cook over a campfire, and so much more! 

Your donation provides a kid with an invaluable experience that connects them more deeply to nature. Your support promotes agricultural practices that conserve the environment while growing nutrient-rich food. Your generosity feeds a family fresh produce and provides a mother peace of mind knowing that her kids are not only fed, but nourished. Please give today!

Mountain Roots is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Our mission is to cultivate a resilient and equitable food system by enhancing healthy connections between earth, food, and community. We foster knowledge, teach skills, and provide opportunities that ensure access to affordable, nutritious food that is regionally based and sustainably produced.

We are grateful for your support and the support of 9News Next’s Word of Thanks microgiving campaign!