A Chicago Farmer Goes To Springfield
Youth Had Its Say on 2025 Black Farmers & Growers Lobby Day
Bob Heuer, a longtime advocate of a better, more local food system, is a friend of and contributor to Local Food Forum. His recent article that proposed replacing the dormant plan for a third Chicago area airport with a regenerative agriculture center drew a lot of readers.
Bob joined a May 14 bus ride from Chicago to Springfield for the Black Farmers & Growers Lobby Day at the state Capitol. He had the good fortune to sit next to Devonjah Wallace, an employee of the non-profit Urban Growers Collective, who shared his moving and uplifting story about how he overcame early hardships and gained his purpose in life through urban farming.
I urge you to read Bob Heuer’s inspirational essay and get to know Devonjah.
Chilly Drizzle on Daley Plaza Market Opener? The Picasso Don't Care
A Surprisingly Fruitful First-of-the-Season Crop Brightened the Visit
It was opening day for the Daley Plaza Farmers Market: located in the heart of The Loop, it is the flagship of the public Chicago City Markets/Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE).
Daley Plaza's massive Picasso sculpture and City Hall in the background give this market and air of distinction. But at ground level, the drizzly and very unseasonably cool weather could have been any market in the Chicago region so far this week.
Yet even on a relatively crummy day in May, you never know when you're going to stumble on some exciting first-of-the-season crop. No spoilers, get the scoop in this Local Food Forum article... For at least some of you, it may whet your appetite for this weekend's regional farmers markets.