We hosted four Meet-and-Greet gatherings and are scheduled to host one every other month. While these events allow Black growers the platform and space for conversation and introductions,they also serve as training opportunities. We developed an educational series called Grow-i-tude: The State of Transformative, Thoughtful Learning with a Growth Mindset. The Grow-i-tude sessions have included financial training and learning how to level up their businesses. We provided Letters of Support (LOS) for four organizations that have requested $1 million in grant funding to address KCs food system. Either financially or in-kind, we have supported BIPOC-led Sankara Farms, Young Family Farms, Ivanhoe Farmers Market, Global One Urban Farming, Ophelias Blue Vine Farm, Kansas City Urban Food Co-op, the Oracle Center LLC and Life 360 a non-profit-organization that is dedicated to the preservation of the counter-narrative of history and storytelling. The website is live, and we are slowly building a social media presence. We have accumulated 400 Instagram followers in a relatively short period of time. We continue to collect pertinent data and build our database that includes the local economic impact that Black growers are making in Kansas City.
