by Liz Hawley, Outreach & Education Coordinator
Since its inception in 1992, Willy Street Co-op’s Community Reinvestment Fund (CRF) has contributed $500,000 to local nonprofits and cooperatives to support developmental and educational projects for our community. The Fund is seeded when Owners who have become inactive and have not claimed their equity after three years either abandon or donate their Owner equity to our Co-op. Grants from the CRF may be awarded to projects supporting food justice and/or access, creating/developing cooperative businesses, sustainable agriculture, health and well-being, and/or social change. This fiscal year, the Board allocated $35,000 for this competitive grant fund, and we received 32 total applications requesting $84,634 in funding.
The CRF grant review committee is pleased to share the 15 projects receiving funding this year:
Anderson Park Friends: Food Pantry Garden Drip Irrigation System $950
Anderson Park Friends (APF) is a volunteer organization that supports Anderson Farm County Park. Over the past three years, APF established a half-acre pantry garden that supplies the Oregon, Belleville, and Badger Prairie Needs Network food pantries with fresh produce. Last year, the pantry garden produced and supplied more than 3,400 pounds of vegetables to their partner pantries, and APF’s goal for the upcoming growing season is to increase that amount by 20%. To meet this goal, they plan to install a pilot micro-drip irrigation system on a 40,000 square foot section of the garden. Not only will the drip irrigation system increase the efficiency of water delivery to the crops, it will also help conserve water, reduce the number of volunteer hours needed for hand-watering, and increase access to fresh produce for the clients of the partner food pantries. Funding pays for the drip system equipment, including 500 feet of drip lines, garden hoses, connectors, and a timer.
Goodman Community Center: Teaching Sustainable Agriculture in Hospitality $3,000
Goodman Community Center’s TEENworks youth career readiness track focuses on seed-to-table culinary and catering skills where teens are involved in the year-round work of starting seedlings, planting an outdoor garden, harvesting, and cooking with the in-season produce. This project will take that work a step further, using greens, herbs, flowers, and produce from the gardens to create living centerpieces for use at Goodman Center community events. Following the events, the centerpieces will be available to take home, complete with instructions on how to extend the life of the centerpiece through replanting or use in a favorite recipe. This project provides teens an opportunity to gain life and job skills, allows Goodman Center events to generate less waste, and promotes sustainable hospitality practices. Funding pays a portion of the project coordinator’s time, including training and supporting teens in event settings.
Groundswell Conservancy: Improving Water Access for HMoob (Hmong) Elders at Westport Farm $4,000
Groundswell Conservancy protects land and water for future generations by creating conservation areas, protecting farmland from development, and ensuring equitable access to nature and land in Dane County and the surrounding areas. In 2021, Groundswell piloted the “Lifting Hearts Therapeutic Garden” at their Westport Farm in Waunakee where 14 HMoob (Hmong) elders tended 11 assigned garden plots and communally cared for one additional plot. This project works toward maximizing therapeutic healing and minimizing barriers for HMoob elders living with post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and dementia; the gardening skills many Hmoob elders learned as children have been shown to be resistant to memory loss and dementia. Following the pilot year of the program, the elders identified the need for water access near the Therapy Garden, so Groundswell plans to extend water distribution from the wellhead 500 feet to the Therapy Garden and provide hoses to make it easier for the elders to water their crops. Funding provides for a portion of the water distribution system and hoses.
Heartland Farm Sanctuary: Compassionate Caretakers: Garden & Grow $3,000
Heartland Farm Sanctuary (HFS) is Wisconsin’s oldest farm sanctuary and provides a safe, lifetime home for more than 80 rescued farm animals. In addition, Heartland Farm Sanctuary offers humane/environmental education programs and experiential therapy for children, and participation rates are growing exponentially. Heartland Farm Sanctuary acquired a larger property, allowing them to welcome more children to participate in their “Compassionate Caretakers Humane Education Program” which includes a “Garden and Grow” component allowing children to plant, tend, and harvest a garden of their own at HFS. Through this program, participants will learn the basics of planting a vegetable garden and how they can grow their own food in an environmentally sustainable manner. Finally, camp participants will harvest the produce and use it to prepare and serve meals to the animal residents. Funding is for children’s garden tool sets, cedar log planters, and a child-size wheelbarrow.
Heartland Threads Fibershed: Bast Fiber Survey $2,550
Heartland Threads seeks to establish a local, sustainable fibershed. They note that the fiber industry in the United States has been decimated in recent decades, and nearly all textiles Americans currently use have been imported. To meet their goal, clothing and materials of household fabrics will be made of natural fibers, such as hemp or flax, and created with regenerative practices. These plant fibers break down naturally, eliminating landfill waste, they are created without toxic chemicals, and they do not contribute to the microplastics crisis. Heartland Threads plans to release a survey to raise awareness regarding the origin of the fibers people purchase and gather data on consumer habits and priorities, which is critical information for future producers and retailers. Funding provides for the survey creation, incentives for completing the survey, creation and printing of promotional materials, outreach, and data compilation and reporting.
Horizon High School: Life Skills Training for Underserved Teens $2,000
Horizon High School provides students in recovery a safe and supportive community in an academic and therapeutic setting. In 2021 they partnered with Second Harvest Food Bank to stock a food pantry at the high school for students and their families, but the students did not have the life skills training for menu planning or cooking skills to prepare the foods. This prompted another partnership with Second Harvest Food Bank in which food bank staff teach weekly classes to provide instruction on the necessary skills to be able to use the food from the pantry. Funding will cover a portion of the personnel wages necessary to run this program.
KLJ Movement: Dance Education and Training $2,300
KLJ Movement was founded in 2020 as a means to create a space of artistic expression that empowers BIPOC contributors in the art of dance; it is the only Black-owned dance company owned by a woman in Madison. At KLJ Movement, youth learn from instructors who have formal training in the styles of hip hop, ballet, modern, and African-influenced movement. KLJ Movement provides safe spaces for youth to learn dance styles that are not always available in academic settings, and they emphasize the importance of representation of historical white-dominant dance styles to be taught by BIPOC instructors. Through dance, the training sessions aim to set the youth up for success in their mental, social, and physical wellness. Funding is for a portion of staff expenses, a ballet barre, and tuition for three BIPOC youth.
Literacy Network: COVID-19 Education for Adult Learners $1,675
Literacy Network provides free adult education services, including literacy skill development, English as a Second Language, digital literacy, workplace literacy, family literacy, citizenship, and GED/HSED. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Literacy Network partnered with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services to expand its services to provide current, reliable, and accessible COVID-19 and vaccination information to adults with low literacy. Ongoing challenges of the pandemic prove Literacy Network clients need additional support to be able to attend programming and continue with their studies. Literacy Network plans to provide one-on-one support for program participants who need assistance finding a COVID-19 vaccine or booster, determining their or family members’ eligibility, or locating and interpreting trustworthy information about the current protocols, vaccine safety, and vaccine guidelines. Additionally, Literacy Network will provide current vaccination education and information to low-income adults. Funding is for student services.
Madison Area Coop-erative Housing Alliance: Zine Compilation on Living in Housing Cooperatives $1,750
The Madison Area Cooperative Housing Alliance (MACHA) began in 2018 as an all-volunteer collective to support and develop affordable, cooperative housing in the Madison area. MACHA aims to grow the number of existing housing cooperatives to meet the current demand and to increase awareness about the cooperative model of communal living—housing that is democratically run and communally owned. To meet these objectives, MACHA plans to create a zine compilation featuring contributions from knowledgeable members of the Madison co-op community on a number of topics, including organizing and financing new cooperatives, membershipping, conflict management, and building community beyond the house. Funding pays for a portion of the compensation for zine contributors and printing costs.
Madison Area Food Pantry Gardens: Enhancing Youth Involvement and Produce Variety at Forward Garden $490
Madison Area Food Pantry Gardens’ (MAFPG) produce production program consists of managing a series of 10 volunteer-led gardens throughout the Madison area. They donate all of the produce they grow to local pantries or emergency food programs. Last year they created an internship program for individuals interested in agriculture, food security, and youth education. This year MAFPG plans to engage more than 300 youth in vegetable production, and they also plan to increase the volume and variety of culturally relevant produce grown at the garden in response to input from food pantry clients. Funding is for youth-size rubber boots, portable handwashing station, boot brush, produce packaging supplies, and a spigot kit.
Madison CycleWorks: Cargo Bike Delivery Expansion $4,459
Madison CycleWorks is a start-up bicycle delivery cooperative that is forming partnerships with local businesses to offer a bike delivery option for the businesses’ products. Their work and vision are rooted in worker and environmental justice while contributing to a strong, local economy, all by bike. The use of bikes as delivery vehicles will reduce carbon emissions and traffic congestion. Funding is for cargo bike components.
Madison Freewheel Bicycle Co: Weekly Bike Repair Open Shop $500
Madison Freewheel Bicycle Co is planning to restart its weekly open-shop events after a long hiatus due to COVID-19. These events are opportunities for students to learn the fundamentals of bicycle repair and maintenance. Madison Freewheel Bicycle Co notes, “We’ve seen a tremendous uptick in interest in bicycle mechanical instruction since the pandemic began: more people are getting involved with bicycles than ever before, and new riders are very interested in taking control of their own people-powered, carbon-neutral transportation.” The open-shop events will provide an estimated 500 hours of instruction through the end of 2022. Funding is for consumable parts and advertising.
Milestone Democratic School: Social Justice Arts Initiative $2,850
Milestone Democratic School (MDS) is a public charter school with “a special focus on outreach, recruiting, and service to the most ‘educationally disadvantaged’ youth: students in poverty, students with disabilities, migrant students, English learners, neglected or delinquent students, and homeless students.” MDS’s Social Justice Arts Initiative will include a four-month class where students will write a business plan, learn business-related math, create items to sell at a Spring Market, which will generate profit to share with social justice organizations of the students' choice. The class will feature guest instructors from local BIPOC-owned businesses, and the Spring Market will include BIPOC artists and businesses as vendors. Additionally, the initiative will include local artists-in-residence to give students the opportunity to be involved in the arts. Funding is for BIPOC artists, musicians, business owners compensation.
The Madison Skatepark Fund: Elvehjem Park DIY All-Wheel Park $3,000
In 2001, a group of local skateboarders formed the Madison Skatepark Fund (MSF) to advocate and fundraise for Madison’s first public skateboard park, which opened in 2015. Willy Street Co-op was a major donor to the construction of the skatepark. Then in 2021, MSF successfully advocated for a pilot project Do-It-Yourself (DIY) all-wheel park approved by the City of Madison. MSF fundraised to cover the cost of all construction materials and provided volunteer labor to build the concrete obstacles, and they finished construction on the all-wheel park in Warner Park last fall. Following completion, the Madison Parks Department identified another space in Elvehjem Park that they offered to MSF for the next DIY skatepark location, and volunteers will begin construction this spring. For both of these DIY skateparks, MSF assigned a park steward to monitor the park to ensure it stays clean and safe, and the group will fund any future repairs needed at either park. Funding is for skatepark construction materials.
Wisconsin Alliance for Women’s Health/PATCH Program: Video Development: Navigating Parent/Guardian Health Care Involvement $2,476
PATCH (Providers and Teens Communicating for Health) is a youth-driven program working to improve adolescent health and well-being. As part of their Teen Educator program, youth are hired and trained to lead workshops for healthcare professionals where they share insights into the concerns, preferences, and realities of today’s youth in healthcare settings. Teen Educators deliver similar workshops to fellow high school students focused on advocating for themselves to get the care they need. Both the students in the peer-to-peer sessions and the healthcare professionals requested additional resources, and to meet this need PATCH plans to create a series of videos in partnership with the youth. Ninjas for Health, a public health-oriented video development company, will work with PATCH and the Teen Educators on planning, filming, and performing, and through these videos, the teens will offer tips for improving healthcare systems and the quality of care offered to youth. Funding is for Teen Educators’ wages, filming day supplies, and Ninjas for Health video editing.
Congratulations and Thank You!
Congratulations to the winners of this year’s grants and thank you to all organizations that applied—you’re all doing great work in our communities! Thank you this year’s CRF review committee: Board Director Gigi Godwin; Owners-At-Large Carol Cohen, Anthony Hernandez, Kirsten Moore, and Glen Reichelderfer; Owner Records Administrator, Rosalyn Murphy; and Education and Outreach Coordinator Liz Hawley.
And of course a special thank you goes out to all of our Owners past and present who make this funding possible.