Norwood Farmstand to operate all year
Partnership begins with American Heart Association and local philanthropist
BY ALEX MITCHELL
North Bronx residents
need not be concerned about
where to fi nd healthy produce
this winter.
That’s because as the Norwood
Farmstand at East Gun
Hill Road and Dekalb Avenue
will extend its operation
year round thanks to
an initiative by the American
Heart Association and a
generous philanthropist.
She is Rose Caiola, a Bronxborn
philanthropist, founder
and CEO of Rewire Me and a
member of the AMA’s board of
directors in the city.
Following a similar mission
from last year, the second wave
of COVID-19 inspired Caiola
to fund operations of both the
Norwood Farmstand in addition
to the Project H.O.P.E.
Fresh Food Box site for a second
winter season amidst
unpredictable circumstances.
The recent collaboration
will also enable the AHA
and GrowNYC to implement
a “healthy food prescription
program,” for the Bronx’s
health vulnerable population.
This will allow doctors
to “prescribe” healthy food
to hypertensive and other
at-risk patients through
health bucks or greenmarket
bucks vouchers.
“Food access was already
of enormous concern and a
top priority for me. As we enter
the ninth month of this
pandemic and witness how
many more of our neighbors
are experiencing food insecurity,
I knew that I had to continue
this partnership with
the American Heart Association
and GrowNYC. Access
to affordable, healthy food
is a right, not a privilege,”
said Caiola.
Additionally, with growing
demand for nutritious
food at the inception of the
COVID-19 pandemic in
spring 2020, Caiola and the
AHA worked with GrowNYC
to fund the Fresh Food Box
Program at Project H.O.P.E.,
which allows Bronx residents
to purchase primarily
regionally grown produce
well below traditional
retail prices.
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BRONX TIMES R 6 EPORTER, DECEMBER 4-10, 2020 BTR
“Thanks to the generous
support of Rose Caiola and
our partnership with the
American Heart Association,
we are able to operate the
Norwood Farmstand through
the winter again this year,”
said GrowNYC President and
CEO Marcel Van Ooyen. “We
are grateful to them both, allowing
us the opportunity to
provide a safe, outdoor option
for Bronx residents to access
fresh, healthy food as the second
wave of COVID-19 threatens
New York City.”
The Norwood market reopens
on Thursday, Dec. 3
and will operate weekly from
9 a.m. to 3 p.m. where SNAP/
EBT and P-EBT type payments
will be accepted.
With every $5 spent on
SNAP, a customer receives a
$2 health buck good for fruits
and vegetables, thanks to the
NYC Department of Health
and Mental Hygiene.
The Norwood Farmstand
will be closed on both Christmas
Eve and New Year’s
Eve but will be reopening in
January 2021. The Norwood Farmstand Photo courtesy of the American Heart Association
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