Fork Farms Featured Farm: Hope Center in Blue Island, Illinois

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At the Hope Center of Blue Island, growing fresh food is both a way to serve the community and a way to teach people how food can be grown.

The organization provides a wide range of resources in the Chicago area, including a food pantry, job training, language instruction, legal guidance, and family support. Its indoor growing program grew out of the food pantry with a simple goal: bring more fresh food to the community.

Today, Indoor Garden Director Geno McKenna leads the hydroponics program using Flex Farm systems for both production and education.

“Partnering with other local organizations like Blue Cap and the Hispanic Access Foundation, we have been able to grow and donate over 700 pounds of hydroponically grown produce,” Geno shared.

The impact keeps growing. Peppers and herbs have made their way into the Hope Center’s Maker’s Kitchen, where they are pickled and dried. STEAM Camp participants get hands-on experience harvesting produce. Community workshops give others the chance to see indoor growing in action and begin thinking about their own hydroponics journey.

It is a great example of what happens when fresh food production becomes a platform for learning, collaboration and community participation.

Thank you to Geno and the Hope Center team for growing food and sharing what you know.

For more about the Hope Center and their work, visit: https://thehopecenter.com/

Follow along during Hunger Action Month as we spotlight more #ForkFarms partners expanding access to fresh food in their communities.

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