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OCEAN VIEW
‘Gangsters’ digging in RACINE EDWARDES RACINE.EDWARDES@MEDIA24.COM @RAEEDWARDES
W
hile the community may not have been pleased with the stigma attached to the group’s chosen name initially, the Kos Gangsters are proving that they are around for the benefit of all residents. The Ocean View Organic Farmers, otherwise known as the Kos Gangsters, are highlighting the importance of agriculture in the community. The five women who form the group – Sophia Grodes, chair; Merna Booysen, treasurer; Nicky Jacobs, farm manager; Carrin Roberts, vegetable box farmer; and Laurica Petersen, broadcast farmer – all began their journey with Justin Bonello’s Neighbourhood Farm internship in February 2019. Bonello founded the non-profit organisation to upskill people in farming and promote sustainable, urban farming. One year later, Grodes says the farm they used for their internship at Ocean View High School officially became theirs. She recounts: “As he (Bonello) drove out, he gave us a set of keys and said, ‘This is your Ocean View, so just claim it back,’ and I said, ‘Yes I’m going to do that’.” Inspired by the names of the restaurant recommendation website, Food Mafia, Grodes says they soon decided on Kos Gangsters. “We explained to the community that we are people who are hungry to grow food and we are ‘gangsters’ because we’re fighting with the rake and with the spade,” says Grodes, explaining the tongue-in-cheek reference. In the short time they’ve been around, the group – with the help of Neighbourhood Farm – built the farm grounds, a nursery, a flower garden, space to make baked goods, the Hoenderhok café and have planted gardens around Ocean View. “We are farmers and we are also sharing our knowledge with the community. We have nine vegetable garden boxes we’ve set up in the community; there’s one at the mosque, one at the entrance of Ocean View High, one at the police station, so we are trying to connect this community again,” Grodes says.
Kos Gangsters educate the community on farming. In addition to providing knowledge, they also grow and harvest vegetables for their paying customers who buy their organic veggie boxes, and donate some of their harvest to local safe houses and homes. Grodes says the success of the farm can be attributed to two things: the need for sustainable food sources and the healing qualities of farming. “There is a need in every house. And now everyone wants to be a farmer. I don’t know what happened to the dreams of being a rapper or a baker but now everyone wants to be a farmer. We are inspiring them.” She adds: “It’s calming, it’s relaxing and it’s soothing. When I started here, I was highly depressed for four years. I was in a
deep dark hole because of my mom passing on. I used to cry every day. So when I started here, there was no time to cry. I forgot about my sadness. This is not just the garden or the farm; it’s for everybody and they feel safe here.” She says she has seen abused women and angry children subdued through work on the farm. Unfortunately, the positive is sometimes overshadowed by the negative elements that find their way onto the farm. Vandalism, Grodes says, is rife. “And it’s not vandalism on its own – it’s theft also. So they (criminals) steal the vegetables and sell it for their habits. I know it’s for their habit because you won’t steal 50 cabbages if you’re hungry. You’ll take three. But they steal up to 90 cabbages at a time –
PHOTOS: RACINE EDWARDES
the whole row,” she explains. “On Monday (9 October) when we came here, it was like confetti. There were just leaves all over. If you steal because you’re hungry, it’s a bit okay for me, but stealing for your habit is not okay. Someone came and told me there’s someone selling cabbages in a wheelie bin, and they’re ours.” Grodes says if community transformation and empowerment are a priority, “Don’t buy from them!” In the future, the Kos Gangsters hope to open a training hub for aspiring farmers and host tourists at the Hoenderhok café, which they also intend to expand. V To support the Kos Gangsters, contact Sophia on 074 334 5547 or visit their Facebook page @kosgangsters for more information.