Maria’s family is participating in a pilot program exploring a local food home delivery model that addresses food insecurity amongst the migrant farmworker population in Vermont. This original interview was conducted in Spanish.
Maria lives in rural Vermont without her own transportation. Getting to the grocery store can be challenging, and finding the ingredients her family prefers is even harder. Because of your help and community effort, Maria can receive boxes of local, culturally familiar food directly at her home.
“I have no favorites. I like everything,” Maria laughs, when talking about her favorite foods. “I like to eat a lot of eggs and beans…I like to make an egg and spinach omelet.”
Maria, who is from Guatemala, lives in the Northeast Kingdom with her children and her husband who works on a dairy farm. She has lived in Vermont for seven years.
Maria likes to cook, and she does most of the cooking for her household. When the kids aren’t in school, they like to help her. “Sometimes they want to help and sometimes they don’t,” chuckles Maria. But it can be difficult for Maria’s family to access the food they like to cook and eat.
“We can’t find some ingredients,” shares Maria. “Like seasonings.”
There is also the challenge of getting food home, a common experience for people who live in rural Vermont and don’t have access to transportation.
“Sometimes a friend brings me [to the grocery store] or someone else. Like, sometimes my boss brings me,” says Maria. “Sometimes once. Sometimes two times a week. Because sometimes the vegetables don’t last long in our house.”
Additionally, COVID-19 has affected the type and quantity of food available on grocery store shelves. Even if Maria finds a ride to the store, it has become increasingly difficult to find certain food items that are familiar to her family.
Maria explains, “Here in the stores, sometimes we have not been able to get what we need from the store because they were closed, or some products from other countries…sometimes the products are delayed or the products can’t get into the US because of the virus.”
Now, thanks to community collaboration and your support, Maria and her family are able to enjoy local, culturally specific food delivered right to their home. Food boxes are intentionally packed with Vermont-grown produce and fresh eggs, and veggie varieties and other food items are selected based on participant input.
Maria shares that the responsive food boxes have allowed her family to incorporate more fresh vegetables and greens into their diet. Her favorite part of the boxes? “The salads,” she says. “They are great.”
Because of your dedication to your community, migrant farmworkers who keep Vermont’s dairies running have also been able to keep fresh, familiar food on the table through a particularly trying time. Thank you for helping to make local and meaningful food accessible to everyone in Vermont.
María vive en la zona rural de Vermont sin su propio medio de transporte. Llegar al supermercado puede ser un desafío y encontrar los ingredientes que prefiere su familia es aún más difícil. Gracias a su ayuda y esfuerzo comunitario, María puede recibir cajas de comida local y culturalmente familiar, directamente en su casa.
“No tengo favoritos, pero todas,” Maria se ríe, al hablar sobre sus comidas favoritas. “Me gusta mucho comer huevos y frijoles…Me gusta hacer como omelet de huevos y espinacas.”
María, que es de Guatemala, vive en el área de Northeast Kingdom (Reino del Noreste) con sus hijos y su esposo que trabaja en una granja lechera. Hace ya siete años que vive en Vermont.
A ella le gusta cocinar, y cocina la mayoría de las comidas para su esposo. Cuando los niños no están en la escuela, les gusta ayudarla. “A veces quieren, aveces no,” dice con una sonrisa. Pero puede ser difícil para la familia de María acceder a los alimentos que les gusta cocinar y comer.
“Bueno, algunos ingredientes que no encontramos,” dice María, “…como sazón.”
También existe el desafío de llevar la comida desde la tienda a la casa, una experiencia común para las personas que viven en la zona rural de Vermont y no tienen acceso a transporte.
“A veces de alguna amiga [a la tienda] o alguien,” dice María. “A veces una. A veces dos por semana. Porque a veces las verduras no tardan mucho… así, frescas.”
Además, COVID-19 ha afectado el tipo y la cantidad de alimentos disponibles en los estantes de las tiendas de comestibles. Incluso si María consigue que la lleven a la tienda, se ha vuelto cada vez más difícil encontrar ciertos alimentos que son familiares para su familia.
Maria explica, “Aquí en las tiendas a veces no hemos llegado como a tener lo que necesitamos en la tienda, porque por el motivo de que cerraron o algunos, algunos productos en otros países… A veces no vienen luego o a veces no están dejando pasar por el virus.”
Ahora, gracias a la colaboración de la comunidad y su apoyo, María y su familia pueden disfrutar de comida local y culturalmente específica entregada directamente en su hogar. Las cajas de alimentos se empaquetan intencionalmente con productos cultivados en Vermont y huevos frescos, y las variedades de vegetales y otros alimentos se seleccionan en base a los comentarios de los participantes.
María comparte que las cajas de alimentos receptivas le han permitido a su familia incorporar más productos frescos y verduras en su dieta. ¿Su parte favorita de las cajas? “Las ensaladas,” dice. “Es bueno.”
Debido a su dedicación a la comunidad, los trabajadores agrícolas migrantes que mantienen en funcionamiento las lecherías de Vermont también han podido mantener alimentos frescos y familiares en la mesa durante un momento particularmente difícil. Gracias por ayudar a que la comida local y culturalmente familiar sea accesible para todos en Vermont.
* La familia de María está participando en un programa piloto que explora un modelo local de entrega de alimentos a domicilio que trata sobre la inseguridad alimentaria entre la población de trabajadores agrícolas migrantes en Vermont.
Glenn is one of Vermont Foodbank’s all-star drivers, and for him, work is personal. Having faced hard times himself, Glenn brings empathy and care that resonate with every neighbor he meets. Watching him work, it’s clear—he doesn’t just deliver food. He delivers connection and hope, with a side of humor that lightens the mood and makes every interaction genuine.
As a retired pastry chef, Cindy spends a lot of time trying new recipes, creating edible masterpieces, and baking for just about anyone she encounters. Cindy also volunteers her talents to teach baking classes at Bugbee Senior Center in White River Junction, where she has found a community she values, and that values her in return.
When life took an unexpected turn for a mom in northern Vermont, she got in touch with the Foodbank to help provide her family with nourishing food. With the one-on-one assistance available to help connect her with the food resources that work best for her whole family, she can keep feeding her kids quality food while investing in her community.
