D.C. might have lots of grocery stores, but almost all of them are west of the Anacostia River. And with the few options east of the river already in danger of dwindling, a small nonprofit is doing what it can to grow the options available to residents.
The Well at Oxon Run is a one-acre plot of land owned by the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation in the Washington Highlands neighborhood in Southeast.
“Not only do we have fresh produce here available for the community, but we also have programming like yoga, nutrition classes and volunteer experiences,” said Melanie Guerrero, the coordinator at The Well.
But fresh produce is the big thing at The Well and it’s there for people to harvest what they might need.
“Right now, we’re just into our summer transition,” said Guerrero. “So we have cucumbers, watermelons, tomatoes, figs, Ethiopian jute leaf, bell peppers, jalapeños. And we have some sweet potatoes as well.”
What’s been a big attraction though is a pilot program with the Capital Area Food Bank. On the last Wednesday of every month, typically, hundreds of boxes of fresh produce are donated by the food bank for residents to pick up. They can take as many as they’d like. Pickups slated for this past Wednesday got moved to Thursday instead. Even still, people showed up to take boxes filled with apples, pears, carrots, onions and tomatoes.
“Me and my mom, we’ve been trying to just experiment more with vegetables and different things,” said Dezja Sabree, who also goes to The Well for yoga on the weekends. “It helps make you want to eat healthier.
“Now you don’t have an excuse,” she said about the otherwise small supply of healthier foods. “It’s right here whenever you need it.”
But Guerrero stresses it can’t be the only option.
“We’re only an acre of land,” Guerrero said. “We have only 10 growing fields. So I think we should acknowledge that an acre of land would not feed the community, just like one grocery store would not feed a community. There should be multiple farms and also multiple grocery stores within this area of D.C.”
This is the second year in a row the produce giveaway happened at The Well. The last produce pickup for this year is scheduled for the Sept. 27, and Guerrero hopes the Capital Area Food Bank will renew their partnership next year. In the meantime, The Well will do what it can with the space it has.
“Fresh produce is essential to everyone,” said Guerrero. “As we can tell, there’s a lack of grocery stores here in the area. So if the means is right here on the farm, we’re happy to do that for folks in the future and right now. It’s a means of getting fresh produce for folks.”
