Mary Evitt comes to Skagit County Community Action as a volunteer through AmeriCorps’ American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) program. She works with the Food Access team to help fight hunger in Skagit County. As a retired journalist, former restaurateur and an avid gardener, Mary brings a whole host of skills, experience and passion to her work with Community Action.
In her tenure, Mary has supported the Food Bank Distribution Center by keeping food bank food orders sorted and even recruiting other volunteers to help with this task. She has supported the Skagit Food Share Alliance, a joint effort of Community Action, North Coast Credit Union and the Skagit Valley Co-op that links food banks with more fresh produce from local farmers.
Mary’s latest adventure is the launch of the new “Victory Gardens.” This program encourages home gardeners to donate excess produce from their gardens or fruit trees to food banks through the Distribution Center. Mary has developed outreach materials including a “Veg Pledge” people can sign to remind them to donate their garden surplus. Participants also get a Victory Gardens sign, a colorful and inspiring marker for home gardeners to identify their participation in efforts to end hunger.
All of these efforts work to bring more fresh fruits and vegetables to those in our community who are in need of healthy food choices. Thanks to Mary for spreading the word and “planting the seeds” to get Victory Gardens up and running.
