The Nashville Food Project’s Blog
A Spirit of Service
"What I love about these programs as we think about the spirit of service is these programs are built on the strengths of those who participate and not their deficits." - our founder Tallu Schuyler Quinn delivering her acceptance speech for the 2020 Alumna Spirit of Service Award at Harpeth Hall School. You can watch the full speech here, where we also offer our gratitude to Harpeth Hall for their recent donations helping us stock our pantry and provide nourishing meals in the community.
Our founder Tallu Schuyler Quinn took the stage recently at Harpeth Hall School to accept the 2020 Alumna Spirit of Service Award. She shared about her journey and our work at The Nashville Food Project including programs like Growing Together.
“What I love about these programs as we think about the spirit of service is that they are built on the strengths of those who participate and not their deficits. I think that's an important and extraordinary way for us to think about poor people. Those of us who haven’t grown up in poverty can often think about poor people as just what they lack. Many of these program participants, while they lack much in life because of an unjust economic system, have incredible strengths, knowledge and experience that contributes something really meaningful in our community. To me that’s such a core tenant in the spirit of service.”
It was a particularly special time, too, as the school’s students and parents also worked that week to raise funds and gather pantry supplies to help keep our kitchens stocked and our community fed. A spirit of service showing up in multiple ways!
During the drive—as well as one Harpeth Hall hosted in 2020—the Harpeth Hall community pulled together an incredible 2,300 pounds of often-used ingredients including cooking oils, stocks, beans, rice and other highly adaptable and fundamental building blocks to our meals.
“These ingredients can be used to add substance and nutrition to such a wide variety of dishes and really help take the edge off of our budget,” says Procurement Manager David Frease. “This frees the kitchen up to spend their resources on more fresh, high-quality produce and protein, adding more diversity to the meals they create.”
David finds some peace after sorting donations at The Nashville Food Project headquarters.
The latest drive also happened toward the end of the cooler months, a particularly lean time for us when the majority of our local farm partners go into hibernation and there aren't as many donations coming into the kitchen.
“The idea of the students rallying behind our cause in such great numbers is really incredible,” David says.
You can hear Tallu’s full speech from Harpeth Hall at the video below.
The Gift of Food: Our Top 4 Needs
We're often asked about our food donation needs in our kitchens, so we've come up with a list of our top four. Whether you're an individual, a congregation, a farmer, or a restaurant... all of these gifts, both big and small, work together to make our work possible.
Here at The Nashville Food Project, we strive to share the freshest, most nutritious meals possible with our community. We wouldn't be able to do this without the incredible support of so many friends, volunteers, neighbors, and partners who first share with us - in so many creative ways!
We're often asked about our food donation needs in our kitchens, so we've come up with a list of our top four. Whether you're an individual, a congregation, a farmer, or a restaurant... all of these gifts, both big and small, work together to make our work possible.
1. Healthy Pantry Staples
Shop Our Amazon Wish List
We're keeping a running list of healthy pantry staples often used in our meal preparation, along with items needed for our garden program, on our Amazon Wish List. You can shop online and have it mailed to our address (3605 Hillboro Pike, Nashville, 37215) - or if you see any of these items at the store and think of us, feel free to pick those out and drop them off with us in person. Gift cards to grocery stores are also welcome and appreciated!
2. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Host A Drive
Yes, olive oil is a pantry staple... but it's so important to our kitchens it gets its own shout-out! Volunteer-organized food drives regularly help fill our pantry. Lately, we've been encouraging groups interested in hosting a food drive with friends, co-workers or faith communities to collect extra virgin olive oil. If you're interested in hosting an olive oil drive, contact Booth Jewett at booth@thenashvillefoodproject.org to let us know and to confirm details.
3. Fresh Produce
Share Your Harvest
Fresh fruits and vegetables are VITAL to our meals. Whether your harvest is large or small, from a home garden or a farm... we're excited! Call our office at 615.460.0172 to let us know you'd like to donate and confirm a good time to drop off. If schedules allow, we can pick up produce donations of at least 75 pounds within 15 miles of our office in Green Hills.
This year, we're also beginning to purchase 'seconds' from local farms! If you're interested in learning more, contact our Food Donations Coordinator, Booth at booth@thenashvillefoodproject.org.
4. Meat
Become a WASTEless Partner
Meat is one of our most costly food budget items, and we rarely have it donated. This year, we're seeking out partners interested in donating proteins on a regular basis. In particular, we're piloting providing food preservation equipment to a small number of Nashville-area restaurants, or "WASTEless partners", to facilitate regular donation of meat trimmings. Are you, or do you have a connection to, a restaurant or organization that could become a regular meat donor? We'd love to talk! Email booth@thenashvillefoodproject.org.