Aug. 10, 2020 -- 1,960 boxes a week. Each filled with 20 pounds of produce, totaling nearly 40,000 pounds. That’s a lot of potatoes.
And tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuces, strawberries, and onions. All of which was distributed by CH-UH staff and volunteers to members of the Heights community, free of charge.
The Farmers to Families program was initiated by Ted Copeland, owner of Perfect Pact and father of Roxboro Middle School teacher Dani Copeland, and Nancy Peppler, the district’s Supervisor of Community and School Partnerships. For ten weeks between the end of May and the end of July, community members would drive through the Heights High parking lot on Thursdays where masked volunteers would place boxes into the open trunks of their cars. Sometimes over one thousand of them, many of whom had been waiting in line since long before the 11: 00 a.m. start time.
2019 Heights High grad and Ohio State University sophomore Julia O’Donnell was moved by the experience of volunteering each Thursday. “The virus has impacted so many people in so many ways, but until I volunteered I never fully comprehended how food could be such a major part of that impact. It was super meaningful to be able to help people during these crazy times.”
In addition to the weekly distribution at Heights, another 100 boxes were brought to the Noble School playground each week for families without access to transportation. The Roxboro Elementary PTA would pick up anywhere from 15 to 40 boxes to distribute to families in the North Coventry neighborhood. Volunteer Monica Matia would take boxes to women’s shelters and drug treatment facilities, while Steve Wertheim delivered them to multiple homeless shelters and the Kosher Food Pantry. The Cleveland Heights Office on Aging distributed boxes to their participants, and local churches sent vans to distribute food to seniors and others who are housebound.
“In this way, we really managed to benefit a wide portion of those in need, both within the Heights and beyond,” said Ms. Peppler.
Many weeks, other organizations including Gordon Food Service stepped up to add protein to the boxes, such as chicken breasts or tenders. Another week, there was pasta, and another, Girl Scout cookies. The Farm to Families partnership was funded by a grant from the USDA and Ms. Peppler hopes it’s able to continue in the future, especially as school closures continue. She reports that most of the recipients appeared to be district families with young children, the elderly, or members of the Orthodox community.
She relied heavily on the hard work of ten to twelve weekly volunteers, mostly district parents, students, and recent graduates, who were responsible for managing the flow of traffic, lifting heavy boxes, and helping people figure out how to open their trunk from inside their car (hint: put the car in park first). She said they were heartily thanked by recipients and especially appreciated the one elderly gentleman who showed up every week with a box of donuts and handmade sign taped to his window that said “Thank You.”