By ALEXANDRA NELSON
Food is something that brings us together and divides us. We all need it, yet only some have access to it.
My name is Alexandra and I am a nutrition student at St. Catherine University hoping to work in food accessibility. It is my core belief that access to nutritious food is a right that every person should have. In high school, I worked in elementary school classrooms and saw firsthand how food insecurity affects children and their families.
According to information shared by the US Department of Agriculture, many Americans suffer from food insecurity. In 2023, 14 percent of all US households were food insecure. Food insecurity is a disparate issue affecting less than 9 percent of white households in America, but nearly 22 percent of black households and 18 percent of Latinx households.
Food deserts perpetuate food insecurity – and the Phillips Community is one of those food deserts.
“There are ethnic grocery stores but Aldi is the only big one on Franklin Ave. The other closest are Target or Cub on Lake St,” said Natalie Bullis, MPH, Operations Coordinator for Community Health at Pillsbury United Communities. Bullis previously lived in Phillips Community.
In recent years, initiatives and Community organizations have been working to combat food insecurity in the surrounding area. The Waite House food shelf is one of them.
“We work with the Department of Agriculture in Minnesota and we buy all the food from farmers so it’s a little more expensive [for us]. Sometimes you go to a food shelf and the food is not always fresh, so we wanted to make sure we were providing fresh food to the people getting food from us,” said Bullis.
In the past, Waite House received funding from the Center for Prevention at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota for their part in the Phillips Community Healthy Living Initiative (PCHLI). The initiative was made up of 3 coalitions, housed out of Waite House: the 24th Street Urban Farm Coalition, the Fitness Coalition, and the Healthy Food Access Coalition. A portion of grants funded to the 24th Street Urban Farm Coalition, as part of the PCHLI, was used to fund a community garden near Waite House: Mashkiikii Gitigan, or “Medicine Garden.”
The Medicine Garden primarily grew plants that can be used for food and medicinal purposes, which differs from other typical community gardens. It is unclear whether or not the Medicine Garden is still being tended to.
For individuals looking for resources, Waite House is located at 2323 11th Ave S, Minneapolis, MN. The food shelf is open: Mondays: 12pm – 4 pm and Tuesdays/Thursdays: 10am-12pm & 1pm – 4pm.
Alexandra Nelson is a junior at St. Catherine University and is enrolled in a media justice Course. Nelson, a Nutrition student, plans to pursue her Master’s Degree in Dietetics.
