The Hunters Point Family is committed to promoting and enhancing the health of our children, their families and the Bayview Hunters Point community through a comprehensive and coordinated approach to food security, access to high-quality, organic produce and education regarding diet, exercise and environmental health.
Since the agency’s inception in 1997, HPF has implemented a green component, also known as the “Healthy Lifestyles” program. The agency’s “Healthy Lifestyles” component was developed in response to the environmental conditions and food security issues in BVHP that directly impact our children and their families. Healthy Lifestyles targets the entire BVHP community, with an emphasis on families living in the public housing community and living below the federal poverty level. Healthy Lifestyles combines job training with addressing local food needs by facilitating youth to grow their own organic produce and distribute it throughout BVHP. It also enhances the overall health and wellness of participants through culturally relevant and fun exercise activities such as hip-hop aerobics, flag football, and yoga classes.
The program started with the Adam Rogers community garden located within Hunters Point’s public housing developments. To complement participants’ work in the garden, HPF facilitated cooking classes and weekly life-skills classes where they learned about health and nutrition. The program also partnered with other organizations to provide exercise and dance classes so youth had a holistic approach to achieving a healthy lifestyle. The Healthy Lifestyles program became so popular that it grew each year. Today the program includes two community farms, a free food pantry, a farmers market, a produce delivery business, and a variety of exercise/dance classes, weight training, swimming, and walking.
The Hunters Point Family is creating an infrastructure to fundamentally change the landscape and create a sustainable food production and distribution system in Bayview Hunters Point through the following programs:
In 2004, the United States Department of Agriculture certified both of HPF’s gardens as urban, organic farms, making them the first and (presently) only certified, urban, organic farms in the state of California.
Hunters Point Food Pantry- The Hunters Point Family partners with the San Francisco Food Bank, to develop and implement a community food pantry. The food pantry is located within the public housing developments and provides food to over 150 families each week. The food pantry uses a grocery store format so that families can select the foods they will eat and to maintain a sense of dignity.
The “Healthy Lifestyles” program combines job training with addressing local food needs by facilitating youth activists in the neighborhoods to grow their own organic produce and distribute it through HPF’s free food pantry in the public housing developments, the HPF sponsored Bayview Hunters Point Farmers Market where the youth have their own produce stand.
Healthy Lifestyles addresses these issues by creating a comprehensive system that simultaneously addresses the issue of pollution, poverty, food justice issues, job and business creation, youth leadership, and community development. The Healthy Lifestyles program consists of two certified urban farms, A certified organic farmers market where produce from the gardens and other farmers are sold, a free food pantry in the public housing community, a youth-run produce delivery business called “Somethin’ Fresh” that utilizes a B-100 bio-diesel truck to pick-up produce and make deliveries, and a store-front (currently in start-up phase) that specializes in smoothies using fresh, organic fruit and herbs, organic rbst-free ice-cream, and a full stocked fruit stand. Products will be sold at cost since it will be managed by a non-profit agency. The Healthy Lifestyles program currently employs 25 youth (5 more when the storefront is operational. It is changing the community culture and creating access to fresh, organic produce. The program advertises and educations the community about he benefits of pesticide free, non-GMO, locally grown produce, clean fuels, self-sufficiency, builds community prid, and creates opportunities for youth entrepreneurship.
HPF has received the following awards: Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition from Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (2007); Certificate of Recognition for work in Violence Prevention from Senator Leland Yee (2007); Certificate of Appreciation for work in Violence Prevention from Assemblywoman from Fiona Ma, Majority Whip (2007); Certificate of Recognition for efforts to address mental health from Senator Carol Migden (2007); Exceptional Programs and People Award for Promoting Mental Health for Youth from San Francisco Department of Public Health (2007); Certificate of Recognition for Environmental and Community Development in BVHP, from the Home Depot; Community Service Award from Blue Cross of California (2005); Community Leader Award from the BVHP Project Area Committee (2005); Certificate of Honor from the S.F.Board of Supervisors (2004); and Certificate of Congressional Recognition from Congresswoman Barbara Lee (2002).
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