‘Soiled Again!’ | The community turned out in droves for the return of popular Southside urban agricultural event
Celebrating its 7th year, the Soil Festival 2022 hosted by Truly Living Well and Food Well Alliance saw its highest attendance since the pre-pandemic.
COLLEGETOWN, ATL. — “Healthy Food. Healthy Soil. Healthy People.”
Sounds like a fairly simple equation to be sure but it’s one that bears repeating, especially during these continually persistent times of uncertainty.
This phrase could also serve as the unofficial tagline for Truly Living Well Center for Natural Urban Agriculture, the 7-acre urban farm located at 324 Lawton St. S.W. in Collegetown, and the official home of the Soil Festival.
Vox Pop ATL spoke with Carol Hunter, the Executive Director of Truly Living Well during the event to get her thoughts on the community’s response to the day’s festivities.
“This is so exciting. Be to honest, my face is hurting from smiling so much,” beamed Hunter.
“We kind of struggled through the pandemic but we held on, we kept doing our thing. So for people to come and see the farm, looking as beautiful as it looks today. They're excited about it and they're excited for us.”
Spokespeople from both Truly Living Well and Food Well Alliance were on-site for the array of farm-to-table-centric activities that included workshops, exhibitors, farm tours, a BYOB (as in bucket) compost giveaway, live music, a beer garden, and of course, activities for the kids.
This marks the seventh year for the annual urban agricultural and the first time since the pandemic that its attendance numbers have soared.
Vox Pop ATL also had the opportunity to converse with the founder and host of the ‘Black in the Garden’ podcast, Colah B. Tawkin about her connection to urban agriculture.
“We're so dependent on plants, but yet we know so little about them, so we need to connect with more, especially Black people,” affirms Tawkin who started her agricultural-themed podcast back in 2019.
“How much more unique could you get than starting a media platform that emphasizes Black voices in this space that is mainly dominated by White people?”
When asked by Vox Pop ATL about her takeaways from the festival, Hunter had this to share about their partnership with fellow non-profit, Food Well Alliance.
“Food Well Alliance partnered with Truly Living Well from day one, and they’ve aligned with us every year to make this festival grow. They’ve also done a lot for the community supporting local farmers, coming up with creative ways to help farmers survive.”
The Truly Living Well’s Center for Natural Urban Agriculture is located at 324 Lawton Street in Collegetown between the West End Farmer's Market ATL, and Ashview Heights.
Visit their website to learn more about what Truly Living Well does for the community or to support their work.
For more information about Food Well Alliance, click here.
To learn more about the ‘Black in the Garden’ podcast, click here.
For all the news that’s fit to click? Visit the Vox Pop ATL website and subscribe for news updates on Facebook.
‘Soiled Again!’ | The community turned out in droves for the return of popular Southside urban agricultural event
One of your best video pieces yet, Dorjan!! Sharing!