Addressing Food Insecurity in Bennington County

Advisory Board

Tatiana Abatemarco
Bennington College

Shannon Barsotti
Community Development Director, Town of Bennington

Natalie Basil
Executive Director, GBICS

Laura Boudreau
SVSU Assistant Superintendent

Chris Callahan
Extension Associate Professor: Agricultural Engineering, UVM Extension

Don Campbell
Regional Director, VT Land Trust

Brian Campion
Director of Public Policy Programs, CAPA; VT State Senator

Kristi Cross DNP, RN
Director of Bennington Blueprint, SVMC

Bill Colvin
Program Director/Community and Economic Development, Bennington County Regional Commission

Alex Dery Snider
Director of Communications, Bennington College

Stephanie Gates SNS
Director, Food Service SVSU

Ben Hall
Bennington College Faculty

Megan Herrington
Bennington Regional Director, Vermont Department of Health

Yoko Inoue
Bennington College Faculty, Visual Arts/CAPA

Andrea Malinowski
Program Manager, RiseVT

Maureen O’Neil SNS
Director, Abbey Food Service

Susan Sgorbati
Director, CAPA, Bennington College

Jim Sullivan
Director, Bennington County Regional Commission

Anne Thompson
Curator, Bennington College

Tiffany Tobin
Director, Hospitality Services, SVHC

James Trimarchi
Director of Planning, SVHC

Grace Winslow
Bennington County Head Start and Early Head Start Health Manager

November 2020

Food Insecurity & Population Health Fellowship

This winter, through the Food Insecurity & Population Health Fellowship, Bennington College will offer seven students fully-paid remote internships with organizations in the Bennington community focused on various dimensions of population health, with a special focus on food insecurity.

Everyone Eats—The Shires

Bennington College's Center for the Advancement on Public Action (CAPA) has joined a local collaboration, funded by a $50k Vermont Everyone Eats grant, that will support local restaurants and provide nutritious meals to Vermonters.

Grow a Row

Bennington College and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum invite all gardeners in the Bennington area to grow an extra row of vegetables this summer to help feed the community.

Produce can be dropped off at the Robert Frost Stone House Museum on Tuesdays from 9:00 am-6:00 pm for distribution to local food pantries. If you're interested in participating in this program, please email capa@bennington.edu. 

Drop-off information:
Robert Frost Stone House Museum
121 Historic Route 7A
Shaftsbury, VT 05262

Drop-off will be at the smaller red screened in barn building on the Stone House grounds. There are a couple of parking spaces located across the path from the barn for ease of drop-off.

October 2020

Storage Crops

On October 14, CAPA and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum hosted a webinar on Storage Crops, featuring a panel of experts who discussed how to store these vegetables through the winter and answered your gardening questions.

Grow a Row

Bennington College and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum invite all gardeners in the Bennington area to grow an extra row of vegetables this summer to help feed the community.

September 2020

At Bennington College, Fall term courses in food insecurity research have begun, including:

• Gender, Subsistence, and Agriculture, led by Tatiana Abatemarco
• Geographies of Food, led by Yoko Inoue
• Make Kitchen Communal Again, led by Yoko Inoue
• Soup Thinking/Thinking Soup, led by Ben Hall
• The Culinary Triangle and Ceramic Pot, led by Yoko Inoue
• Understanding Food Insecurity in Bennington County, part 2, led by Tatiana Abatemarco and Susan Sgorbati

Fall Preparations for Winter Gardens

On September 14, CAPA and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum hosted a webinar on Fall Preparations for Winter Gardens, featuring a panel of experts who shared what they are doing in their fall gardens and answered gardening questions.

Grow a Row

Bennington College and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum invite all gardeners in the Bennington area to grow an extra row of vegetables this summer to help feed the community.

August 2020

How to Preserve Food

On August 24, CAPA and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum hosted a webinar on Food Preservation, featuring a panel of experts who shared how they are preserving food this season and answered questions about food preservation and gardening.

Grow a Row

Bennington College and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum invite all gardeners in the Bennington area to grow an extra row of vegetables this summer to help feed the community.

July 2020

Food Insecurity Coverage

July 26: Bennington College Addresses Food Insecurity with Residents (Bennington Banner)
July 26: Willy's Variety Produce Fridge (VT Farm to Plate Network)

June 2020

Gardens for Residents at Willow Brook and Beech Court

Erin McKenney, director of the Robert Frost Stone House Museum at Bennington College; faculty member Tatiana Abatemarco; and Lindsay Vajda, Public Housing Program Director at the Bennington Housing Authority dropped off tools and plants, so residents at Willow Brook and Beech Court can grow their own gardens at these apartments.

May 2020

Resilience Gardening in Bennington

Faculty member Tatiana Abatemarco and Robert Frost Stone House Museum Director Erin McKenny hosted a panel discussion on home gardening for resilience, featuring some of our community's expert gardeners who answered questions on everything from keeping plants healthy to saving seeds, and much more. They also discussed the Grow a Row campaign, which invites local gardeners to grow an extra row of vegetables to donate to families in need. Watch the recorded panel. 

April 2020

Local Farmers Respond to COVID-19

Faculty member Tatiana Abatemarco and Robert Frost Stone House Museum Director Erin McKenny hosted a panel discussion with Lisa MacDougall of Mighty Food Farm, Jesse Pyles of Smokey House, and Jesse McDougall of Studio Hill Farm regarding the specific actions being taken in the Bennington region to maintain a robust local food supply during the pandemic and beyond. Watch the recorded panel. 

March 2020

Postponed—Bennington Food Summit on Relocalization

As the situation around COVID-19 continues to unfold, the College's top priority remains the health and wellbeing of our campus community. As a preventative measure to protect both our on- and off-campus communities, the College is canceling or rescheduling all campus events previously listed as "open to the public,” including the Bennington Food Summit on Relocalization. 

This event has been postponed and will be rescheduled in Fall 2020.

Food Insecurity Coverage

March 12: 7 Ways Bennington College’s Food Service Team is Taking Single-Use Plastics Off the Menu (Food Management)

February 2020

This month, join us for the following community events:

• February 28: Forgotten Farms: Film Screening and Panel Discussion

As a capstone to Susan Sgorbati's Understanding Food Insecurity in Bennington County course, students shared final presentations exploring local economies, food justice, sustainable agriculture practices, and more.

• Why Should We Support Local Economies? 
   
• Equitable Food Systems
   
• Data on the Town of Bennington
   
• Building Community Through Food Access, Innovation, and Local Markets
   
• Sustainable Agriculture—Practices and Technology
   
• Bennington County Community Garden Project
   
• Empty Bowls & Soup Making
   
• Bennington Food Resource Guide and Asset Map

Food Insecurity Coverage

February 5: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center Prepares Gleaned Surplus Food into Meals for Feeding the Hungry (Food Management)

January 2020

$15,000 Awarded to Community Resource Fund Grant Recipients

Bennington College has awarded three grants of $5,000 each to implement and support community-proposed initiatives that explore and expand food systems in Bennington county. 

Project proposals from Willy’s Variety Store, Shires Housing, and Project Against Violent Encounters (PAVE) were selected among applications from community members to Bennington College’s Community Resource and Strategy Fund. This fund supports catalyzing, collaborative projects that further understanding of local food systems and leverage innovative solutions to address food insecurity in Bennington County. 

 Applications for the next cycle of the Community Resource and Strategy Fund will be accepted beginning on September 15, 2020.

Food Insecurity Coverage

January 12: Bennington College Works with Community to Fight Food Insecurity (Bennington Banner)
January 9: $15,000 Awarded to Local Organizations Addressing Food Insecurity in Bennington County (Bennington College)

December 2019

Food Insecurity Coverage

December 6, 2019: Shopping Locally Helps Bennington College Get Plastics Off the Menu (Bennington Banner)
November 29, 2019: A Lot More Than Soup Went Into These Bowls (Brattleboro Reformer)
November 24, 2019: Letter: Thanks for the Success of Empty Bowls Supper (Bennington Banner)

November 2019

This month, join us for the following community events:

• November 17: Bennington Empty Bowls
• November 18: Soul Fire Farm Lecture 
• November 21: Climate Change Teach-In 3: Climate Friendly Food Systems

Save the Date:

• April 24-25, 2020: Regional food summit, led by CAPA and the Bennington Regional Planning Commission, consisting of trainings, workshops, panels and networking.

Food Insecurity Coverage

November 15: Shaping Bowls, Forming Community (Bennington College)
November 8, 2019: Hunger Council, CAPA Eye New Food Security Initiatives (Bennington Banner)
October 27, 2019: Many Hands Help Shape Empty Bowls for Annual Event (Bennington Banner)

October 2019

Save the date for the following community events:

• November 17: Bennington Empty Bowls
• November 18: Soul Fire Farm Lecture 

Food Insecurity Coverage

October 9, 2019: Food Insecurity Work Moving Forward at Bennington College (Bennington Banner)
October 4, 2019: Bennington College Starting New Population Health Fellowship with SVMC (Bennington Banner)

September 2019

Save the date for the following community events:

• September 21: Bennington Empty Bowls Workshop
• September 26: Agriculture and a Changing Climate 
• October 5: Bennington Empty Bowls Workshop
• November 17: Bennington Empty Bowls
• November 18: Soul Fire Farm Lecture 

The Community Resource Fund is now seeking applications for implementing catalyzing, collaborative projects that further our understanding of local food systems and leverages innovative solutions to address food insecurity in Bennington County. Apply by October 15.

At Bennington College, Fall term courses in food insecurity research have begun, including:

•  Understanding Food Insecurity in Bennington County, led by Susan Sgorbati 
• Social Kitchen: Ceramics, Food, and Community, led by Yoko Inoue
• Introduction to Food Studies, led by Tatiana Abatemarco
• Gender and Agriculture: Market and Substance, led by Tatiana Abatemarco

If you are a researcher or activist working to address food insecurity in Bennington County and are interested in connecting with this cohort of partners, please reach out to Susan Sgorbati.

Past Updates

July 25, 2019: Bennington College to Provide Free Summer Meals (Bennington Banner)
June 21, 2019: A Collective Approach to Addressing Hunger in Bennington County (Vermont Public Radio)
June 10, 2019: Bennington College to Explore Local Food Insecurity (WAMC)
May 28, 2019: $1 Million Awarded to Address Systemic Causes of Food Insecurity (Press release)