An unlikely farmer with an unlikely place to farm—and the effect he’s having on low-income kids, communities and presidents (yes, plural)—is the subject of my latest USA Character Approved Blog post.
A World War I-era song asks the musical question “How ‘Ya Gonna Keep ‘Em Down on the Farm? (After They’ve Seen Paree).” When Will Allen left his father’s farm on a college basketball scholarship, he certainly had no intention of ever returning to farming. But after a pro basketball career in the US and in Europe (where he certainly got to see the lights of Paris) and a stint in the corporate world, back to the farm is exactly where he headed.
It was while playing ball in Belgium and driving around the countryside there that Allen began to feel the pull of the farm again. Soon, he was hanging out with Belgian farmers and moving to a house with room for a garden and some chickens.
The farming urge stuck with him and continued to grow. After retiring from the court and building a successful corporate career, he traded it all for a used tractor and a farm outside Milwaukee. So how did he get from there to founding Growing Power, Inc. to promote urban farming, helping Michelle Obama launch her program to fight childhood obesity in America and being named to Time magazine’s 2010 Time 100 List? Interesting story. You’ll find it on my latest USA Character Approved Blog post.
I saw this gentleman in an urban farming documentary about a year ago. Will, I commend your passion and drive. I hope to bring something similar to Denver in the next few years. Let’s face it, a few fresh herbs growing on a windowsill can elevate cooking to the next level with minimal effort. Everyone should know how to grow. It sustains us.
You’re taking on a cool challenge, Mike. Good luck to you. And you’re right that everyone should know how to grow.
I love this! Not just that Will is farming, but that he’s using his influence to promote urban farming. What an awesome story.
Terry,
It is so great to see people like Will spreading the word of how important it is to eat well and eat sustainably, especially in poorer urban areas where these communities have limited access to good quality fruits and veggies. I am quite sure there are lots of very happy little tummies because of his great work! He needs to take on our school lunch programs! There is another charity that does very similar work in upstate New York that has a service called the Veggie Mobile, which delivers fresh fruit and veggies to poor areas in addition to promoting urban gardening. You should check out their blog!
http://theveggiemobile.blogspot.com/
Will is an absolutely incredible man. The nicest person you could imagine. What an inspiration.
Rowdy Chowgirl—And one of his main points is that you can farm just about anywhere. His group has even helped communities turn converted abandoned parking lots into urban farms.
Dime Store Foodie—The Veggie Mobile sounds like a really great program. I wrote about a couple of organizations taking produce to food desert neighborhoods in Detroit in a recent post here.
Melissa—The more I read about all Will has done and is doing, the more impressed I am. He really is incredible.