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Grow a Little Extra program helps fight hunger in Thermop

The Red Dirt Master Gardeners are encouraging local home gardeners to donate their extra fresh garden produce to help their neighbors in our community. Last year was the first year Thermopolis participated in the Grow A Little Extra program and it was a great success. Local gardeners were very generous and donated over 787 pounds of produce last summer. There also are beds in the Community Garden which are designated to grow to produce for the Grow A Little Extra program. 

Produce can be expensive and in these times of increasing food prices, many families or seniors on fixed incomes cannot afford to purchase it at the grocery stores, and generally, fresh produce is not available at local food pantries. The donated fresh locally grown produce is given to individuals and families in need, local non-profits, and service organizations. Already this season, we have given produce to several families, individuals living in the Hot Springs Senior Housing, and the dietary department of the Pioneer Home. 

Grow A Little Extra coordinator Kelly Strampe said, “Like last year, produce can be dropped off at Lazy Fox Artisan Goods, 536 Arapahoe Street Wednesday through Sunday. We are very excited that we received a $500 grant from First Lady Jennie Gordon’s Wyoming Hunger Initiative that enabled us to buy a refrigerator and shelving for the Lazy Fox to store the fresh produce. This summer for the first time, individuals will be able to come by and pick up donated produce since we are able to keep the produce fresh. We appreciate the local partnership with the Lazy Fox, which helps make food collection and distribution easier for our group, as well as those who are in need.” 

Strampe also described that this program is important to her personally. She said, “The reason is, is because there is a lot of hunger in Wyoming. I just saw down the street they’ve got probably 50 cars lined up for the food pantry down here from the River of Life church. And a lot of it is for children. And that’s really important to me. So just seeing that, whether it’s children or whether it’s seniors on a limited income, whether it’s veterans or families, whoever it is that’s hungry, I think, you know, we need to do our part. And it certainly helps that the governor’s wife has got a great program. That hunger initiative kind of attacks it from a number of different areas and I just want to… and not only me, but I think Red Dirt Master Gardeners really wants to support that and help our community.”

Red Dirt Master Gardeners is proud to partner with the University of Wyoming Extension Master Gardener and Cent$ible Nutrition Programs, and the Wyoming Hunger Initiative to fight food insecurity again this season. Local gardeners in communities across our state have been wonderful in responding to the need. As the Wyoming Hunger Initiative states on its website: “Neighbors caring for neighbors by sharing extra is just one of the many characteristics that makes Wyoming such a wonderful place to live. “

If you want more information about donating produce, the Grow A Little Extra program or the Red Dirt Master Gardeners; you can contact Kelly Strampe at (307) 870-2726 or Stephanie Owens at (307) 324-4343. You can also learn more about the Wyoming Hunger Initiative by going to the website: nohungerwyo.org. They have several interesting programs, including Food From the Field, which helps get game meat donations to food pantries, and Food From the Farm and Ranch, where agricultural producers are helping donate locally grown protein and produce. 

 

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