Prevent the Sale of the People's Kitchen Gardens
Donation protected
People’s Kitchen Philly was launched in March 2020 as a response to the swelling community needs of hunger and employment. The People’s Kitchen continues to serve free and fresh meals (200,000 meals to date) and currently maintains 30 community gardens that were transformed from abandoned plots of land. In the garden, community members and volunteers grow fresh fruit and vegetables, used to prepare meals in the kitchen and the produce is also available for the neighbors.
In June 2022, the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office placed flyers on several of our community gardens in Southwest Philadelphia (multiple lots on 61st and Reinhard), notifying us that they would be putting the land up for auction— one set of gardens will be auctioned on July 7th and the other set on August 5th. On these lots, we are already growing a variety of fresh produce, including corn, cabbage, spinach, watermelon, strawberries, and garlic. We have planned to build an urban greenhouse on one of these lots. The People’s Kitchen is fundraising to buy these lots to permanently grow food for the community.
Our community gardens are concentrated in the Southwest Philadelphia community that was one the center of the crack epidemic and is still one of the poorest sections of Philadelphia. The People’s Kitchen is revitalizing the neighborhood by transforming previously abandoned plots of land into gardens, growing free produce for the community, as well as a place where community members and volunteers gather to hold cookouts, plant vegetables, and build community solidarity. The community in Southwest Philadelphia needs community land to be protected; our gardens should not be sold to developers who plan on sitting on the land until the neighborhood becomes gentrified and expensive. They should continue to be owned by the community and the people to do what is best for the community around it.
We need your help. We anticipate the lots that we are growing food on will be auctioned off for at least $10,000. We would greatly appreciate your donation to ensure our land belongs to the community so we can continue to build our community from within. Sharing our GoFundMe would also be greatly appreciated.
In June 2022, the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office placed flyers on several of our community gardens in Southwest Philadelphia (multiple lots on 61st and Reinhard), notifying us that they would be putting the land up for auction— one set of gardens will be auctioned on July 7th and the other set on August 5th. On these lots, we are already growing a variety of fresh produce, including corn, cabbage, spinach, watermelon, strawberries, and garlic. We have planned to build an urban greenhouse on one of these lots. The People’s Kitchen is fundraising to buy these lots to permanently grow food for the community.
Our community gardens are concentrated in the Southwest Philadelphia community that was one the center of the crack epidemic and is still one of the poorest sections of Philadelphia. The People’s Kitchen is revitalizing the neighborhood by transforming previously abandoned plots of land into gardens, growing free produce for the community, as well as a place where community members and volunteers gather to hold cookouts, plant vegetables, and build community solidarity. The community in Southwest Philadelphia needs community land to be protected; our gardens should not be sold to developers who plan on sitting on the land until the neighborhood becomes gentrified and expensive. They should continue to be owned by the community and the people to do what is best for the community around it.
We need your help. We anticipate the lots that we are growing food on will be auctioned off for at least $10,000. We would greatly appreciate your donation to ensure our land belongs to the community so we can continue to build our community from within. Sharing our GoFundMe would also be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
People’s Kitchen Philly
Organizer and beneficiary
Kenny Chiu
Organizer
Philadelphia, PA
Benjamin Miller
Beneficiary