A Full Plate for All Investing in Food Systems

The idea struck John Arnold as he drove beside a refrigerated beverage truck on the expressway. What if we brought food to people, instead of people having to visit indoor food pantries? With support from Grand Rapids Community Foundation, this idea soon changed how food pantries worked. Large, refrigerated trucks were filled with food and driven to central locations where neighbors could shop for free.

This simple but powerful idea launched Feeding America’s Mobile Food Pantry program. Since 1998, it has spread nationwide and become one of the most effective ways to deliver food—especially fresh produce—to communities in need. New ideas like this can reshape how systems work and who they serve.

The Community Foundation is committed to making sure everyone has access to food, now and in the future. That is why we support community members like John, who challenge the way things have always been done and imagine better solutions. John Arnold passed away in 2012, but his ideas and impact live on.

Our food system includes all the people, resources and processes from how our food is grown to how it gets — or doesn’t get— to our plates. We must invest in solutions that address the causes of hunger and eliminate discrimination. That way, more people can find and afford healthy food.

New City Neighbors, a recent grant partner of the Fund for Community Good and the Gordon and Janet Moeller Food Security Fund, offers solutions. Not everyone has the connections, land, money or skills to become an urban farmer. The New City Neighbors Farm Apprentice Program pays new farmers to learn about leadership, environmental care and farming skills.

I’m already seeing some of my goals come true – and this is only going to be my second [of three] year[s] as an apprentice. The barriers to urban farming, it comes down to land use and land access. Those are the two biggest barriers that prevent people from moving towards a food sovereign place. It’s been a privilege to be a part of this apprenticeship.

-Abylene Vargas Leon

They grow fresh produce that makes its way to kitchen tables all over metro Grand Rapids. New City Neighbors is creating employment opportunities and creating pathways for youth in urban agriculture and helping build a more just, equitable and resilient regional food economy.

We know that our community will continue to create lasting change so everyone in West Michigan has a full and healthy plate.

In the 2024-2025 fiscal year, Donor Advised funds made 90 grants totaling more than $460,000 to West Michigan organizations focused on food security.