In the heart of South Providence, amidst triple-deckers and asphalt, a green patch of land stands out. This is the Somerset Community Garden, where 50 people grow their own food every summer. It's a welcome oasis in an urban setting. On this sunny October day, a woman is harvesting the "Somerset Thai Chilli," a special pepper named after the garden that has been here for over 40 years.

Southside's Growth and Impact

The Somerset Community Garden, at two-thirds of an acre, and City Farm across the street, with three-quarters of an acre, were the original pieces of land obtained by the nonprofit Southside Community Land Trust in 1981. Over the years, Southside has expanded to offer land and support services to those who want to farm. It manages dozens of community gardens across Providence, within walking distance for the local residents.Margaret DeVos, who came from Detroit to be Southside's executive director 12 years ago, said, "For a lot of us, it feels like air. We have food. Not for everyone, though. When people control their food systems, they make sure their communities are fed."The numbers tell the story of Southside's growth and impact. Last year, 1,600 community gardeners and their families used 60 gardens and farms that the nonprofit either owns or leases. A total of more than 23,000 people benefited from Southside's programs.As prices have skyrocketed, food insecurity has worsened. "Healthy, fresh food is expensive. It doesn't have to be," said DeVos. "We're just structured in a way that the best stuff costs the most." Some neighborhoods in Providence are food deserts, with no access to healthy, fresh food.Rochelle Lee, Southside's board president, said, "The food system has led us down a path where we don't have much control over what we eat. Processed food, diabetes, hypertension – even in poverty, you didn't see these types of illnesses before."

Health Care Partnerships and "Vegetable Prescriptions"

Southside took a major step forward with the arrival of DeVos, who expanded the organization's focus from gardening to farming and food services. This includes a program where farmers lease land from Southside and are paid for their produce. The vegetables are then distributed to patients in need through partnerships with Brown University Health (formerly Lifespan) and Care New England."They have doctors who are talking with patients and finding that their patients are experiencing food insecurity. They write a vegetable prescription," said DeVos. "We call it our Veggie RX program."Southside's Food Hub also helps relieve farmers of the burden of marketing their crops. "It's kind of magical that people come from war-torn places and are able to employ their skills here," said DeVos. "We get to buy the food."

Partnership with RI DEM and Urban Edge Farm

Some of the produce comes from Urban Edge, a 50-acre farm in western Cranston near the Scituate line. Southside leases the farm from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management for $1 a year and makes it available to people who want to farm."We recognize the value of supporting farmers in urban environments and contributing to food security," said Ken Ayars, DEM's longtime chief of the Division of Agriculture and Forestry.On a crisp October morning, a small army of volunteers helped harvest a bumper crop of collards on one of Urban Edge's plots. The volunteers from Farm Fresh Rhode Island arrived to help Charlotte Uwimpuhwe, who came from Rwanda more than a decade ago and leases land from Southside.

Youth Program and Seasonal Jobs

Southside also runs a youth program during the growing season. Chandelle Wilson, the education program manager, works with 30 teenagers at community gardens. The teens are paid and expected to be punctual and communicate when they can't make their shift.On an unusually warm fall afternoon, Wilson worked with high school students at a garden space rented from the Pawtucket Housing Authority. They were getting the garden ready for winter by covering the beds with leaves."Our teens don't engage with nature. The youth program gives them an opportunity to engage at their own pace. But they're also having fun," said Wilson. "It's a different kind of fun that our teens aren't exposed to as much."

City Farm as a Demonstration

Back in Providence, Rich Pederson oversees City Farm, across the street from the Somerset garden. It serves as a demonstration farm and looks larger than three-quarters of an acre. Pederson estimates he'll grow 80 types of vegetables over the summer.He sells most of what he grows at the Armory Park Farmers Market and gives the rest away to neighbors or sends it to food banks. "Most food travels an average 1,500 miles. Mine goes 1 mile," said Pederson. "We all have the opportunity to steward the land. The [land] trust work of giving people access to land is priceless."The Rhode Island Spotlight is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that relies on donations. For more information, go to RhodeIslandSpotlight.org. Reach Jim Hummel at Jim@RhodeIslandSpotlight.org.