7 minute read
Meet Funky Town Fridge ������������������
Meet Funky Town Fridge: A Community Fridge in Fort Worth, Texas
JESSICA OSWALD
MS, RDN, LD
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS
We’re living in unprecedented times� Even if you’re tired of the word unprecedented (I know I am), there are no other words to describe what our world has been like for the past 18+ months: global pandemic, historic election, record-breaking weather events and a social justice movement with global impact� In the midst of all this, there were amazing humans paying it forward and making a real impact� Kendra Richardson is the founder of Funky Town Fridge (FTF) and I had the opportunity to chat with her about her entrepreneurial spirit and the creation of FTF�
Tell me a little bit about yourself.
Kendra Richardson: I’m a former educator� Before this year [2021], I taught high school� I was the president of the local chapter of the NAACP� I have my own hair company - a natural hair-care line - and I am the founder of Funky Town Fridge�
Tell me more about FTF. What is it? What does it do? When did it start?
KR: FTF is a community solidarity fridge� It officially started operating on September 26, 2020� The fridges are placed outside of buildings and they are accessible 24/7� Anybody can put food into the fridge and anybody can take food out of the fridge� There are no questions asked� There are no requirements� It’s not policed�
Where did you come up with the idea?
KR: Instagram! During the height of the George Floyd protests and the Breonna Taylor murder, I decided to take time to think through and reflect on what would be impactful, sustainable, here for years to come, and create material change� We can say that we are fighting for economic justice and environmental justice but what does that look like? What do we want this world that we’re fighting and protesting for to look like? So, I was scrolling through Instagram and once I saw [the concept of a community fridge], it just clicked and everything else aligned�
How do you decide where the fridges go?
KR: I know these neighborhoods because I’ve grown up in them� They haven’t changed� They’re all-black neighborhoods� They don’t have grocery stores� They don’t have resources� People don’t have cars� They don’t have money� The fridges go where they are needed the most�
What is the biggest difference between FTF and other nonprofits that provide food?
KR: Everything� We’re not a nonprofit� We’re an LLC� We are for the community, operated by the community, protected, maintained and loved by the community� Every resource that we get, we give straight back to the community� We do more work than just the community fridges� We were doing work during the winter storm� We do other mutual-aid work� Ultimately, the biggest difference is that we are instilling in the community that it’s up to us to take care of each other�
Tell me more about the work that you were doing during the winter storm.
KR: We just started putting people into teams and mobilizing� If people could make phone calls, they did� If people could accept donations and organize them, they did� If people could give donations, they did� We took hot meals to the homeless camps around town and single-parent households� We got word of some kids who didn’t have food so we gathered groceries and took them food� It wasn’t a set operation� Things
needed to be done so we figured
out where we could fit in and help�
How can people get involved?
KR: Volunteer� Fundraise� Fill the fridge�
How can people fundraise?
KR: It’s harder to fundraise because we are an LLC� When the need arises for money, we ask and people give� If we get extra money, we’ll do mutualaid work� I’ll be honest; I haven’t figured out money yet� I have a bookkeeper� We have a Patreon� We’re selling t-shirts� We monetize our social media platforms� This is a business at this point� We try to keep our expenses down and keep money in our pockets�
How can dietitians help?
KR: We want to start a cooking show� We want to promote healthy and nutritious lifestyles� We need recipes� We need valuable purposeful information that we can give out� We need information on the nutritional value of foods, what they do, how they can help� FTF isn’t the only community fridge� There are fridges in Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, New Orleans and Austin� There might be one in your community�
Jessica Oswald, MS, RDN/LD, is the owner of a private practice specializing in intuitive eating and meal planning� She’s also the clinical dietitian at a pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities� Jessica enjoys cooking, reading, and training for the occasional half-marathon� She’s also a proud cat mom; ask her about that time she crawled under a car to rescue a kitten�
Kendra Richardson is a Fort Worth, Texas native and she loves this city � Prior to starting Funky Town Fridge, Kendra was a high school teacher and the founder of a natural hair care line called “Cocoa Butter Queen�” Kendra and Funky Town Fridge are on a mission to combat hunger, empower communities and reduce food waste�
You Can Advocate for Your Profession!
SUSAN ADAMS
MS, RD, LDN, FAND
NOMINATING COMMITTEE
Advocacy can mean several things, starting with Webster’s definition of advocacy as “the act or process of supporting a cause or proposal: the act or process of advocating�” The synonyms include: promotion, campaigning for, championing, recommendation of a thought, idea or product�
This definition makes it seem as though we all advocate for what we believe in, perhaps on a daily basis� We are all advocates. We all have limited time in our days and might desire to advocate for various subjects; however, there simply
isn’t enough time or energy to do it
all. When faced with this dilemma, I suggest focusing on advocating for what is most important to you�
One of the most important areas of my life is my profession (after my family, of course)� I choose to advocate for the health and wellness of my clients and residents through promotion of the profession of dietitians and other nutrition practitioners� For me, it is important to advocate for the licensure of RDNs in my home state� I have served on the licensure task force in my state for five years, and while working within this task force I have learned more about public policy, licensure and the role of the RDN than I ever thought possible�
You may be thinking, “I don’t know enough about public policy and licensure to get involved advocating for this area” or “I couldn’t talk to my representative; I wouldn’t know what to say�” I felt the same way� After a while the butterflies left my stomach and I found myself explaining to a state representative or senator (or anyone else) how RDNs are uniquely positioned to help others through nutrition� In order to explain this simple truth, I had to reach out, not only to my elected officials but to other RDNs to gather their stories so that my stories represented many voices� I found myself in the role of champion for my profession and the people we serve� Advocating for what I believed in forced me to learn more about it� Advocating helped me be a better professional and leader�
Along the way I found the resources at the Academy’s Advocacy Page most helpful (eatrightpro�org/advocacy)� You can start out small and send an Action Alert, which takes about five minutes� What a rush it is to receive an email from a U�S� Senator’s office that thanks me for taking the time to respond with my thoughts and concerns� There are plenty of opportunities available to make your voices heard� The more we reach out, the stronger our voices, and our profession will be better leveraged to do what it does best – help others� By helping others, we help ourselves� Consider taking the leap and advocate for what you believe in�
Susan Adams, MS, RD, LDN, FAND, is a registered dietitian who consults with assisted living accounts and an educator who specializes in educating the next generation of nutrition professionals� She believes that food and nutrition heal others and enjoys helping the next generation and the greatest generation� She enjoys cooking, walking, her family, and her Silky Terrier Tucker, and a good glass of red wine�
