Dig In Yancey Community Garden - Yancey County, North Carolina

Community Garden Hunger relief

State Rd 1109, Burnsville, NC 28714

General About the Organization/Mission

Dig In's Mission Statement : "Our mission is to build and maintain a volunteer-operated community garden and, through established partnerships with local hunger relief agencies, provide fresh fruits and vegetables to people within our community who are in need of food assistance. The garden will also serve an educational function, to teach, inspire, and empower people in Yancey County to grow their own healthy foods using both traditional and modern sustainable methods."

All the produce from the community garden is for local hunger relief agencies or education purposes.

Basic Info

Type of Organization	Non- Profit
Website	http://diginyancey.org/
Primary Contact	[email protected] Mailing Address: Dig In! Yancey Community Garden P. O. Box 1095 Burnsville, NC 28714
Social Media	facebook

Issues of Focus

Dig In! is a Garden that Gives - all food grown by the community is given without charge to community members. The objective of Dig In! is to ensure that everyone in Yancey County has the opportunity to eat and cook fresh food for themselves and families. Dig In! creates this opportunity in three ways: 1) growing food using organic methods that are distributed to food pantries and food ministries in Yancey County; 2) creating community infrastructure that increases food grown by gardeners and farmers and eaten by their neighbors; and 3) hands-on learning and teaching relationships that increase Yancey County residents' knowledge on how to grow food in the mountain climates.

History of Organization

Two friends planted the seed of Dig In! when they grew tired of serving canned foods at the local food pantry. In 2009, they convened a community meeting in Burnsville that was attended by over 40 people ( a lot in a small, rural community!). Volunteers built the first lasagna bed on a donated site and Dig In! was born. Since that time, a part-time garden manager with a volunteer board, gardeners and the resources of community partners have grown and given away over 25,000 pounds of organic food to people who would otherwise not have the money to purchase such food or time to grow it.

Land Search

Dig In! initiated a search for the new Dig In! Homeplace in the fall of 2014; the land currently cultivated by the organization is available to the organization through the 2016 growing season. Land donations, financial donations and other gifts that help Dig In! find a permanent home where it can grow and give away food in Yancey County is a charitable donation and therefore, tax deductible.

Edging complete, May 2012

Programs and Projects

Work Together Garden Days : Volunteer gardeners come to the garden on specific days and times to garden family style. Join us until October 15, 2015 on Mondays from 3-7pm and Thursdays 9am-2pm

Harvest Tables: A table set with food grown at Dig In! and from local gardens and farms at locations in Yancey County. Come for food, come to share. 2016 schedule will be published in April 2016.

Learn & Teach: We are all teachers, we are all learners in the garden. Stay tuned for hands-on educational opportunities at Dig In! and in Yancey County.

Partners and Frequent Collaborators