It's All a Cherry Good Idea
One of the things that first drew me to Portland Fruit Tree Project (well before I ever worked here) was that it felt like such a common sense solution to a complex looking problem: food is wasting on trees/the ground and there are hungry people and people that can’t afford fruit.
Pick it and share it. Easy. Problem solved.
But it’s never easy, is it? There are a million reasons fruit doesn’t make it to stomachs - pests, disease, weather, wildfire smoke, the list goes on. On the whole, our country - our world - doesn’t have a lack of food. What we have is a distribution problem.
We were lucky to help be a distribution problem solver this week though and it felt like a fun thing to share with you - our fellow fruit enthusiasts!
Imagine that you get an email on a Friday evening that there are hundreds of pounds of cherries sitting an hour away and YOU CAN HAVE THEM! Now, add in that your van is probably not going to make it an hour out of town, your refrigeration unit is down and the part won’t be there until Wednesday, and your team is swamped with tree care, indexing, harvesting, and an event coming up.
What to do?
In the words of my five-year-old’s favorite show (Gabby’s Dollhouse) - asking for help is a super power, so you start texting the many community partners in your ecosystem.
Problem 1: transportation - The Community for Positive Aging let us use their van. Check.
Problem 2: refrigeration - Lift Urban Portland/ will share some refrigeration space, as will the Community for Positive Aging. Partial check - need more cold storage.
Problem 3: 1400lbs of perfect cherries need homes fast. Hunger Fighters, CfPA, Lift Urban Portland, Feed ‘em Freedom/Mudbone Grown, P:EAR, Bethlehem House of Bread, and others are ready for drop offs and pick ups.
All told, it took a lot of texts and calls, but those cherries got picked up on Tuesday and have largely made their way out in the world. Some are pickled at P:EAR, many are just in bellies. It’s been great to get some of the pictures and social media shout outs.
Gleaning is a all a “cherry good idea,” but it wouldn’t be possible without the other organizations, volunteers, donors, and other community members who share our passion.
Inspired?
Check out our partners and considering donating and volunteering with them, following their social media, joining their newsletters, etc!
