As you may know, the Western Maryland Food Council has supported the work at Frostburg Grows since its inception.  Now that the project has completed, some remaining equipment and supplies will be auctioned on 10/27.  Here is the public auction info: 

​PUBLIC AUCTION
​
Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022 3:00 PM
For Western Md. RC&D.

@ Frostburg Md. I-68, Exit 34, RT 36 South ¼ mile, watch for auction signs

Greenhouse and grower supplies and equipment such as hoops for a 30’x 40’ high tunnel plus extras, 2-40ft storage containers, 8- 4x4 caged water tanks, new and used row covers, shallow well pumps, gas water pumps, 4” flex drain pipe coils, sump pumps, step ladders, raised bed railing, 300ft tape measure, Hitachi sawzal, miter saws, small reddy heaters, ½” pex pipe rolls, plant starter packs, 3500 watt generator, metal heavy duty base and wall cabinets and lab counter tops, solar panels, batteries, 2-boat trailers, 10- 1x4x8 insulation, igloo coolers, vine clips, porta-john, small air compressor, 300’ 2 inch pvc piping, metal racks, gas cans, office chairs, miscl. items

Check auctionzip.com or gotoauction.com for photos and questions call Jesse Maust Auctioneer or Willie Lantz at 240-321-8568
 
Jesse Maust Auctioneer Ph 814-662-2943
Lic. AU004048

As many of you know, we lost one of our longstanding WMFC members, Sherry Frick, last month.  Sherry was such an inspiration to us, with her commitment to local farms and foods, her dedication to help end hunger, and her passion for helping teach others about our food system.  

UMD College of Agriculture & Natural Resources Dean, Craig Beyrouty, captured our sentiments in his email regarding Sherry's passing: 

Sherry had the most giving heart and enthusiasm for life, and she will be deeply missed by all.

Sherry was an incredibly dedicated and active member of the college community. She spearheaded a number of notable projects that earned her significant recognition for their undeniable impact across the state. Her innumerable accomplishments include the Jane Gates Heritage House teaching garden, where she helped serve the museum’s mission of faith, education, and African American History. Sherry designed and executed a backyard transformation that included four raised beds for vegetables, a small bed for fruit, and a pollinator garden.

Sherry initiated the “Apples for All” project in 2017, where she collaborated with a local WWII veteran who wanted to donate all of the fruit from his orchard to folks in need. Frick organized 35 volunteers to pick and distribute over 6,000 pounds of apples to 22 organizations including food pantries, homeless shelters, senior centers, soup kitchens, and schools. 

Some of Sherry’s other innovative projects include the installation of the new rain garden at a local school as well as her work at 13 different sites where she assisted in the planning and design of community or demonstration gardens. Sherry was ever present at her local farmer’s market as an ambassador for its popular demonstration garden, which she was instrumental in designing. The garden provided a platform for programming opportunities and emphasized native plants, attracting pollinators, the historical use of plants for medicine, dye, fiber, edible landscaping, and food gardening.

When the pandemic hit, instead of scaling back programming, Sherry ramped it up. She collaborated with the Garrett County horticulture educator to transition programs into a virtual format. Their gardening and forestry series drew an amazing 3,500 participants for their synchronous sessions. Also during that time, Sherry chaired UME’s Program Reopening Committee which was tasked with developing guidelines and resources for Extension educators to return to in-person programming in response to COVID-19 health and safety issues. 

In her free time, Sherry was engaged in many service activities including three visits to Haiti with a local church to educate women about proper seed planting techniques and growing vegetables and flowers.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Oct 22 at 1 pm at Pleasant View Baptist Church at 8931 Garrett Highway    in Oakland, with a dessert extravaganza to follow.  

We have four follow-ups from our food council meeting today: 

1. Maryland Food System Resiliency Council Lunch & Learn:
October’s Lunch and Learn will be held on October 19th at noon and will feature FSRC member, Meg Kimmel, Executive Vice President & Chief Strategy Officer of the Maryland Food Bank (Member of the FSRC and Co-Chair of the Food Access and Distribution Subcommittee), and Carmen Del Guercio who is the Maryland Food Bank President and CEO. More info in the flyer here.

2. White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health was held on September 28th.
The Executive Summary is here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/09/27/executive-summary-biden-harris-administration-national-strategy-on-hunger-nutrition-and-health/

3. In preparation for the upcoming legislative session, the Maryland Hunger Solutions Annual Legislative Brainstorming Session will be held on Thursday, Oct. 20 from 1-3:30 pm. The discussion will be held virtually with breakout sessions covering SNAP and Child Nutrition Programs. MD Hunger Solution’s Director, Michael J. Wilson, is a member of the FSRC. The link to register is here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZItduytrTwsHdULXO5SNttPOeIpeChzit4F​ 

4. Save the Date! 
The next (annual) Western Maryland Food Council meeting will be held February 9, 2023 (2nd Thursday) at 4:00 pm. It will be held in person with a zoom option.