One of the best success stories to come out of the pandemic last year was Eastside Connect, a farm box program run by Veggielution, the community farm at Emma Prusch Farm Box in San Jose.
Volunteers, coordinated by the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition, delivered boxes to East San Jose residents on bikes with custom-made trailers. And the cyclists — most of whom were not from East San Jose neighborhoods — were partnered with local residents who knew the area and could talk to them about the challenges the community faces.
But a couple weeks ago, a supply container at the farm was broken into and three bikes with trailers were stolen. “It’s not the first time this has happened,” said Emily Schwing, Veggielution’s public affairs director, but she noted that ” it has been more than a year” since the farm has had a break-in. She added that Veggielution wants to work with agencies like Destination: Home to build up community resources that would make people less likely to take the bikes to begin with. “They took something they probably really need, especially for someone who doesn’t have transportation or housing,” she said.
And, as far as the bike coalition is concerned, this will just be a bump in the road.
“While this is unfortunate, it will not deter us from continuing, on schedule, to implement the program,” Shiloh Ballard, executive director of the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coaltion, said in SVBC’s blog. “It just means we need to recruit volunteers who have their own way to carry farm boxes, ideally with any sort of trailer or any means to carry the boxes.”
Forty farm boxes are delivered to families every month, though Veggielution hopes to expand the program in the near future. The next delivery date is Aug. 7, and anyone who wants to volunteer — newbies can be paired with veterans — can register at bikesiliconvalley.org/eastsideconnect.
‘ME TOO’ FOUNDER TO SPEAK: Tarana Burke, a woman who has dedicated her life to social justice work and is probably best known as one of the founders of the “Me Too” movement, will be the speaker at the YWCA’s Inspire Luncheon on Oct. 28.
Burke, a sexual assault survivor and executive director of the Me Too organization (metoomvmt.org), is the co-editor of “You Are Your Best Thing,” — an anthology of Black writers, organizers, artists, academics, and cultural figures who discuss vulnerability and shame resilience. Her memoir, “Unbound: My Story of Liberation and the Birth of the Me Too Movement” is expected to go on sale this fall.
The YWCA event again will be virtual this year, and you can get more information or register at yourywca.org/annual-events/inspire-luncheon.
FROM FARM TO TECH: David Mariani, a member of a multigeneration farming and fruit-packing family, will give an online presentation July 26 about the Santa Clara Valley’s transition from an agricultural community to the world’s high-tech capital. Mariani — who has served on 27 corportate boards and has experience in agri-business and venture capital, is the author of “Poverty of Affluence,” a book about how that transition affected the valley’s farming families.
You can register for the 7 p.m. talk, co-presented by the Saratoga Historical Foundation and the Sunnyvale Heritage Park and Museum, at www.saratogahistory.com.
NEW FACE AT THE LIBRARY: Patricia “Patty” Wong — president of the American Library Association — has been tapped as Santa Clara’s new city librarian, starting in October. Her 37-year career has taken her throughout California, and most recently she served as the city librarian in Santa Monica. Hopefully, she won’t miss the beach too much.
Wong was recently inaugurated as the first Asian American president of the library association, a national organization that provides resources to library professionals.
EUREKA!: The Los Altos History Museum is celebrating the opening of its new exhibit on the Gold Rush with a “Pioneer Day” on July 25 from noon to 4 p.m. The hands-on activities include quilting, butter making, pioneer games and gold panning. Visitors are encouraged to dress in “Western wear,” but basketball shorts and a cowboy hat will probably do for the rushed. It’s $5 per party and registration is required at www.losaltoshistory.org.
The exhibition, “Gold Fever! Untold Stories of the California Gold Rush,” which runs through Aug. 29, features photos, documents and artifacts from the era that tell the stories of individual Californios, women, Native Americans and immigrants who came seeking their fortunes.
