Dear FRESH Friends,
Chill as it has been, the sun is up today, and spring is again upon us. The lengthening days, the wind and the rain and the sun all remind me of the constant flux of the natural world, and how living things are transformed through seasons and years.
The reminder is welcome at FRESH New London, where change is part of the business plan. The turn from winter to spring, spring to summer is hopeful and inspiring; it is also a grounded example of the ways of the world, the natural order of things. Change comes without a doubt; it is our job as cultivators of change to know what we want, and to help steer new developments towards our vision and our ideals.
Living things grow and change profoundly through the stages of life; any single organism is deeply diverse in its look, its feel and its function over time. A seed is not a flower, the root is not the fruit, and timing is essential. And just as a plant proceeds through growth, first seeds, later flowers, so does an organization, like FRESH, grow, evolve and change. In this way, my season as Director of FRESH New London is giving way, and a new era, a second decade, for FRESH is beginning. By the end of May, I will be a member of the board of this organization, and Alicia McAvay, our current Farm to School Program Director, will take the reins as Director of FRESH New London.
Change has definitely been a constant theme for us, and it has been educational and fun to experience the unfolding of projects that we have been pursuing for over a decade. In that time, our society and world have seen a resurgence in interest in human scaled, community agriculture and whole foods- driven by persistent issues of health: health of individuals, health of economies and communities, health of ecosystems.
On a local level, we have seen so much interest- and that interest has influenced the work that we have pursued and the success we have achieved.
We have tried a lot of things: built a farm and a robust CSA; demonstrated urban gardens that have developed into a network of school and community gardens; established youth programs that serve students from pre-K to post grad in age appropriate service and learning projects.
Over that time, we have engaged thousands of people in our programs while employing hundreds of youth and more than 20 adults in a variety of capacities: each of these people, along with so many of you, have shaped our programs with enthusiasm, curiosity, leadership and sweat equity.
Our current Farm to School focus on students, teachers and school communities leverages schools into epicenters of food system change.
Thank you for your support, your help, and most importantly your participation, in our work to date. I sincerely hope that it will continue into the dynamic and inspiring days, and seasons, to come.
Sincerely,
Arthur Lerner
Founder, FRESH New London
P.S.: A Transition for All of Us
I look forward to speaking with many of you about the transition that is taking place at FRESH, as well as the new directions that I am heading personally. The short answer for me is that by June 1 I will be a full time student for a year earning a Master's of Science Education at UCONN/ Avery Point, with a 2017 goal of teaching Biology at New London Public High School. Please feel free to contact me anytime at the same email you have always used for me, to reach out personally or to talk more about where FRESH is going.
A major piece of that last answer can also be directed to Alicia McAvay: FRESH’s incoming Director!
Alicia can be reached at: freshnewlondon@gmail.com
Please keep this email on file, and begin immediately to direct general inquiries regarding FRESH to Alicia at that address.
I am very excited about FRESH’s future (including the immediate future!) The summer of 2016 is shaping up nicely under the leadership of our still quite new Youth Organizer Erick Carrion. We have just recently moved our offices (again!), this time into the fold of our great long time partner: the City of New London: we are now at the Martin Center: 120 Broad Street, NL, CT (please note our best mailing address remains: PO BOX 285 in New London). Further, we have also just hired our first ever Office Manager: Frida Berrigan is joining us this month and is tasked with the critical work of reaching out and connecting communities around our food projects. We want to hear from you, we want to learn about the ideas and projects that you want to be part of. Reach out. We will be here!
Peace,
Arthur
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