youth
education
In partnership with Cleveland Metropolitan School District and other local schools, we develop and lead STEAM lesson plans aligned with state standards. We guide learners through designing, planting, maintaining, and harvesting annual and perennial gardens, fostering an understanding of and appreciation for local food systems and their impact on health and wellness. We fold nutrition, culinary arts, and entrepreneurship lessons into this holistic program. We also host field trips, camps, and workshops at our Coit Farmers' Market Learning Garden and nurture youth entrepreneurship in food-based small businesses. Thank you to our program funders such as Rite Aid Healthy Futures Foundation, United Way Greater Cleveland, United Black Fund of Greater Cleveland, Abington Foundation, Martha Holden Jennings Foundation (grants to educators program), FairLife, Thomas H. White, and more!
OUR programs
Urban
Restoration
Through partnerships with local organizations such as Rid-All Green Partnership and the Cuyahoga Land Bank, Food Strong supports grassroots community groups in acquiring and restoring vacant lots through sustainable agriculture. Thank you to former County Executive Armond Budish and Cuyahoga County for funding this initiative. We're now focusing this expertise on a new 5-year initiative: restoring a 3-acre site with an old church and farmhouse on Superior Avenue. We are cultivating the property as Food Strong's new Cleveland headquarters and community gathering, training, and development hub.
Community engagement
In all of our programs, we work hard to engage the communities we serve. Our Care-A-Van events are wellness-focused experiences that celebrate fresh, local foods, promote healthy movement, and connect under-resourced communities to essential wraparound services. We partner with healthcare professionals, chefs, nutritionists, artists, teachers, and performers to offer education, arts and crafts, live music, health screenings, cooking demonstrations, physical activities, and more. We offer Care-A-Van at farmers' markets, community potlucks, arts festivals, and schools. Thank you to our funders such as Humana and CareSource for sponsoring this program!