Food Not Bombs Greeting Day, May

Food Not Bombs Greeting Day, May

This month’s greeting day will take place on Sunday the 19th. RSVP through the link.

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Have you heard about Richmond Food Not Bombs, but been unsure about approaching a group of strangers in an unfamiliar setting? Not sure what food access justice means? Have you never cooked vegan or written to political prisoners before? Do you have questions about the politics, history, or process of RVA Food Not Bombs?

Food Not Bombs is a loose worldwide conglomeration of local food justice organizations, who believe that food is a right and the conditions of poverty are structural violence. Richmond Food Not Bombs has been in operation for nineteen years, serving a vegan meal that is free to all and prepared from donations and food that would otherwise go to waste, on Sunday evenings in Monroe Park. RVA FNB has only ever missed two servings in their entire near-twenty-year history. Currently, we cook out of a collective in Barton Heights, from 12:30-3:45pm, and eat in Monroe Park from 4-5pm, on Sundays. During downtime while we cook, we write notes and letters of encouragement and solidarity to political prisoners.

Members are always available to greet newcomers and answer questions at the regular Sunday cooking, eating, and cleanup- and anyone is welcome to attend any Sunday- but we also hold monthly Greeting Sundays, where a specific member volunteers to act as the greeter and guide for any newcomers. There will be nametags, literature, and a member available specifically to address your questions and explain the process, from grocery pickups all the way through to cleanup.

This week’s greeter is yet to be determined, but your contact for this event is Kat. If you have questions or concerns prior to Sunday, you can contact her at mcnealkc@vcu.edu, or through Facebook. You don’t need to show up right at 12:30, as this is an informal event. Feel free to come to the specified address from 12:30-3:30pm, and to the corner of Main and Belvidere at Monroe Park from 4-4:45pm.

There will be dogs at the cooking site, which is not wheelchair accessible, and lacks central AC, so dress appropriately for the weather. Here is more information regarding accessibility and allergies: http://wingnutrva.org/2012/12/15/accessibilityallergies-at-the-wingnut/ .

Greeting Days are held every month on the 3rd Sunday. If you miss this one, there will be more!

Letter writing to political prisoners during FNB cooking time.

Letter writing to political prisoners during FNB cooking time.

From the Wingnut website:

“Richmond Food Not Bombs cooks from 12:30 to 3:45 every Sunday at the Wingnut Anarchist Collective at 2005 Barton Avenue.

Often there is some downtime during the meal preparation and cooking time. To take advantage of that time to do more politically with Food Not Bombs we are trying the following idea.

The Wingnut will now be providing the info and address of one political prisoner each week, who has a birthday that month, that folks can write a short note or a few words of encouragement to, which we will then mail out.

We know that a lot of folks are not used to writing full letters, and we hope that through collaborating to fill paper with notes and drawings we can bring some cheer and solidarity to folks from various radical social movements (like ours) who are incarcerated.

Folks interested in further prisoner support work should get in touch with SPARC- Supporting Prisoners and Acting for Radical Change.”

Come out and join us on any Sunday.

Anticipating shorthandedness today.

Good morning, folks,

We’re anticipating some shorthandedness today at the cooking period, and we could probably use some additional vehicles, too. If you can help out, show up at 2005 Barton Avenue, between 12:30 and 3:30pm.

As always, anyone is welcome to join us at the corner of Belvidere and Main streets in Monroe Park at 4pm to enjoy a delicious vegan dinner.

RVA Food Not Bombs Greeting Day, February

RVA Food Not Bombs Greeting Day, February

It’s almost that time again!

Greeting days are monthly events, on the third Sunday of every month, in which the curious are encouraged to come out, and a specific greeter is appointed from among experienced members whose task it is to answer questions and make everyone feel at home.

See the link to RSVP and for accessibility information. If you wish to speak to a greeter before the greeting day, with specific questions or just to get more comfortable with the idea of coming out (we know that strangers are scary sometimes), you can contact Kat (the event creator on Facebook), or e-mail us at rvafoodnotbombs@gmail.com.

Meeting Sunday is coming up.

Don’t forget, we hold our meetings on the first Sunday of each month, at 1pm during cooking, at our host site (2005 Barton Avenue). This coming Sunday, February the 3rd, will be our second meeting of 2013.

Because Food Not Bombs is a non-hierarchical organization, meetings are important; they’re how we decide what we need, who will do which tasks, and how we’ll handle things like last-minute catering requests for activist and communal events.

Greeting Day Success and Monday 1/21 Cook Reminder

Greeting Day Success and Monday 1/21 Cook Reminder

Our first monthly Greeting Day was a success! We met new friends and reinstated our literature table, which had fallen out of use recently. Pictures should be available soon.

Remember that tomorrow, MLK Day 1/21/2013, Food Not Bombs is cooking for a vigil outside of AV Norrell Elementary School, in Barton Heights. The school was built on top of an unlined dump, and has experienced serious environmental problems for years; because the students have historically (and continue to be) mostly poor and black, the city administration has continued to deny any problem. After a closure in 2006, it was recently reopened this past September, and a community group, Parents for Life, is working to close it again. We’re preparing soup and hot cocoa for the event.

We’ll be meeting at 4pm at our regular host site, 2005 Barton Avenue in Northside- extra hands are very welcome. For more information about the vigil and the environmental racism of keeping kids on the dump, see the title link.

Updating the Literature Table

Because Food Not Bombs is a political and community space, we bring literature, as well as food, to the park for Sunday dinner. Our literature table has fallen a bit out of date recently, so we’re looking for new zines, fliers, pamphlets, newsletters, or papers.

To have your publication or your organization’s publication included, either drop it off at 2005 Barton Avenue, our host site, or show up with it between 4-5pm at Monroe Park, at the corner of Belvidere and Main streets.

Publications that have been part of the lit table in the past, or which we would like to include in the future, include those of: the Flying Brick Library, Copwatch, the Industrial Workers of the World, the Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project, the Richmond Peace Education Center, Supporting Prisoners and Acting for Radical Change (SPARC), the Jericho Movement, Richmond Zine-Fest, the Rag and Bones Bicycle Co-Op, the Wingnut Anarchist Collective, the Mindful Liberation Project, ROSMY, the Gay Community Center of Richmond, and more.

RVA FNB’s First Monthly Greeting Day is next Sunday

RVA FNB’s First Monthly Greeting Day is next Sunday

Have you heard about Richmond Food Not Bombs, but been unsure about approaching a group of strangers in an unfamiliar setting? Not sure what food access justice means? Do you have questions about the politics, history, or process of RVA Food Not Bombs?

Members are always available to greet newcomers and answer questions at the regular Sunday cooking, eating, and cleanup- and anyone is welcome to attend any Sunday- but we’ve decided to begin a tradition of monthly Greeting Sundays, where a specific member volunteers to act as the greeter and guide for any newcomers. There will be nametags, literature, and a member available specifically to address your questions and explain the process, from grocery pickups all the way through to cleanup. FNB member Andy will be teaching a brief workshop on knife skills.

This week’s greeter will be Kat. If you have questions or concerns prior to Sunday, you can contact her at mcnealkc@vcu.edu, or through Facebook. You don’t need to show up right at 12:30, as this is an informal event. Feel free to come to the specified address from 12:30-3:30pm, and to the corner of Main and Belvidere at Monroe Park from 4-4:45pm.

There will be dogs at the cooking site, which is not wheelchair accessible, and lacks central heat, so dress warmly. Kids are welcome, provided they are supervised. Here is more information regarding accessibility and allergies: http://wingnutrva.org/2012/12/15/accessibilityallergies-at-the-wingnut/ .

Greeting Days will be held on the 3rd Sunday of each month. If you miss this one, there will be more!

The Chili-Cobbler Cookoff was a success!

Our Chili-Cobbler Cookoff fundraiser tonight went great, and we made $162.44! We’ll use some of that money to buy sugar, spices, and new serving utensils. Congratulations to our contest winners (and enjoy your prizes), and a big thanks to our hosts, the Bainbridge Collective.

RVA Food Not Bombs needs a truck or van tomorrow, 01/13/2013

Food Not Bombs could very much use a truck or van tomorrow, Sunday the 13th, to transport food and groceries from 2005 Barton Avenue in Barton Heights to Monroe Park.

Please call or text 703-859-0393 if you have a truck or van you can drive at this time.