South Seattle Celebrates Community and Urban Agriculture at Farm Fest

The annual Farm Fest, a community celebration of urban agriculture at Rainier Beach Urban Farm and Wetlands, recently brought together organizations and community passionate about local sustainable food systems. This year's event, hosted in partnership with Tilth Alliance, Nurturing Roots, and the Friends of Rainier Beach, showed off the lush agricultural landscape and community spirit of South Seattle and beyond.

Nyema Clark, Farm Queen at Nurturing Roots, emphasized the importance of representation in farming communities. "Folks of color need to see themselves in these spaces," she stated, reflecting on the challenges of displacement and the vital role Nurturing Roots plays in supporting communities of color, including elders and the East African community. Among Clark’s set up at Farm Fest was her organization’s popular smoothie bike, an interactive activity where anyone can blend a fresh smoothie by pedaling.

Khaliah Willis, Secretary for Terrebonne Truck Patch Farms, spoke on the critical need for events like Farm Fest. “A lot of funding for farming is drying up,” she said, explaining that the trend disproportionately hurts farmers of color. Willis highlighted the alarming statistic that only about 1% of farmers in the United States are Black, capitalizing on the importance of reconnecting communities to their agricultural roots. 

Terrebonne Truck Patch Farms, a small family farm in Carnation, is a nonprofit dedicated to serving the community and promoting health, wealth, and nurturing nature. They generously gifted samples of their homegrown produce, including Willis’ dad's famous homegrown watermelons to festival attendees. 

Development Manager at Tilth Alliance Kala Matzdorf explained the purpose of Farm Fest succinctly. "We're hosting at Rainier Beach Farm just to show people in the community what resources are out here and what all is going on,” she said, describing Farm Fest as a celebration of the South Seattle community and urban agriculture across the city.

Visit tilthalliance.org/event/farm-fest-at-rainier-beach-urban-farm-wetlands/ for more details about Farm Fest and updates on next year’s event. 

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