This Women’s History Month we honor women who are making a difference in our communities. We’d like to shed light on two women leading Health in the Hood, an important partners of ours - Founder Asha Loring and Opa Locka Community Garden Manager Corine Newsome. Health in the Hood is a non-profit which began as a passion and is now on a mission to end food disparity in South Florida, striving to create a comprehensive health and wellness environment for urban communities that don’t have access to natural food supply.
Asha has made a conscious effort to create eight farms in South Florida with most of them in the northwest quadrant of Liberty City, Overtown, Miami Gardens, Pinewood, and Little Haiti, and one more farm they’re currently building. She noticed the need for healthy and natural food sources in these urban communities, which led her to educate families about these programs.
“I was so confused as to why I could go to the gym, stop by Publix and get healthy food but people who were just a mile away from where I worked, exercise, and live didn’t have that same access,” said Asha.
Health in the Hood is the answer to food insecurity, as a local 501c(3) that builds vegetable gardens in food deserted neighborhoods throughout the 326 food deserts in South Florida. The program receives land donations and converts them into various vegetable gardens. To maintain the gardens, they hire local residences in the neighborhood who serve as great educators for students and families to connect with their food source, learn about nutrition, and how to grow their own food.
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