Nonprofit’s farmers’ market feeds those in need

People in line hold umbrellas and reusable bags, shield their eyes and chat with neighbors outside a Pasadena church on this hot Friday afternoon. Young couples hold hands. Seniors use walkers. Kids run and skip near their adults. Everyone is patient, and the line moves fast.

The big banner out front declares this a “Together We Thrive Farmers Market, Free Food Giveaway.”

At the giveaway destination, cheerful volunteers move with skilled precision, working around each other and the stacked boxes of produce. Volunteers in the back row unload and open new boxes of produce and vegetarian items from electric vans.

The front row helps folks select items that are fresh and appealing, just like you’d see in any grocery store. Baskets overflow with plump lettuce, shiny peppers, beets, melons, fresh ginger, shallots and asparagus. There’s a reason all the fruit and vegetables look so good: They’re organic, fresh and donated by regional growers through local farmers’ markets.

It takes about an hour to distribute all the produce and for the line to vanish. At cleanup, most boxes are empty, except for a few onions and potatoes. Another box catches scraps for composting.

This was another successful produce distribution courtesy of Together We Thrive (TWT), which started offering the giveaways earlier this year. With a mission to bring fresh, healthy produce to everyone, especially those in underserved communities, the Agoura Hills–based nonprofit has two distribution points: Pasadena on Friday afternoons and Canoga Park on Monday mornings.

The food bank is one arm of TWT, which engages in projects that bring clean water to sites of natural and manmade disasters, as well as provides clean drinking water to communities with polluted supplies. Founder and Executive Director Lindsay Chambers explains she has had a “couple of lives,” including being a sought-after custom home developer and interior designer. But early on, she was a farmer growing Hass avocados and Valencia oranges in Healdsburg and later in Ojai.

“I love farmers’ markets, and that was the impetus for the Together We Thrive farmers’ markets,” she says. “We don’t get picked-over stuff. This is some of the best produce around. We work with farms like Tutti Frutti, buying their surplus, and gleaning from other farmers’ markets in Mar Vista, Porter Ranch and Brentwood.”

“I wanted a dignified way to ask and receive food that didn’t feel like a handout. Creating an actual farmers’ market elevates the experience.” —Lindsay Chambers, Together We Thrive founder and executive director

In the first six months of operation, the nonprofit served 750 people each week across the two locations. They’ve hosted 47 free farmers’ markets and distributed 76,800 pounds of fresh produce. So far, they have trained 38 volunteers, who’ve contributed 523 hours of service. The numbers keep growing each week.

A farmers’ market is a welcome experience for those who struggle with food insecurity and who typically end up at a food bank being handed a big box of prepackaged and ultra-processed foods they didn’t pick out. Chambers sees the farmers’ market model as a way for folks to choose for themselves and learn how a vegetarian-heavy diet can promote better health.

“I was going to open up a regular vegetarian food bank, and I volunteered at banks across the country and realized they have a lot of waste,” she says about refocusing her goals. “I wanted a dignified way to ask and receive food that didn’t feel like a handout. Creating an actual farmers’ market elevates the experience.”

Logistically, it’s been easy to coordinate pickups from farmers who already are coming into LA for farmers’ markets. Produce is stored temporarily at TWT’s Agoura Hills headquarters until it can be sent to farmers’ markets within a few days for ultimate freshness.

“We are connecting the client with the farms,” explains Elianna Friedman, program director of Together We Thrive Food Bank. “We share with the farmers the impact their produce is making and vice versa. This is a really beautiful model.”

For the Monday market, TWT partners with the Family Resource Center in Canoga Park, a nonprofit that’s been around for more than 20 years serving the community. The Pasadena market started by helping a local church supply free food to evacuees, survivors and first responders of the Los Angeles fires. It’s kept going and growing. TWT staff are eager to add another farmers’ market on Wednesday or Thursday if a location works out.

“More and more people attend our markets and many bring items back to large households,” says Chambers. “The food is going faster now than we realize. There is an immediate need every week.”

• For more information, visit TogetherWeThrive.charity/food-bank.