If you have landed on this page, you probably know that I had the opportunity to join the team at Mother Hubbard's Cupboard--or as we call it, the Hub--about a year ago. I still can't really believe it.

When I landed in Bloomington in 2011 and was looking to get involved in the community's local food scene, the Hub kept coming up. I kept hearing about this great organization that was an early adopter of client choice in their pantry. From day one of operations, the Hub let its patrons self-identify the items they needed from their pantry. This sounds simple, but at the time, most other organizations were still pre-packing bags or defining a shopping list for their patrons. The Hub was leading the way on maintaining dignity for their patrons, both locally and nationally.

Over my years in Bloomington, I had the chance to engage with the Hub in myriad ways. I learned how to plan my garden, received free seeds, and made friends I cherish through their garden programming. I've partnered with them while working with other organizations to plant fruit and nut trees in our community to make food more readily available, but more importantly to bring folks together for a shared goal and to create space for thinking about what public land is for.

Now, I'm staff at the Hub. And I see how each day, in each moment, what matters most to us--what makes the Hub work--is its enduring commitment to community. All that we do, from our workshops to our resource sharing to the way we fundraise, is designed to bring folks together. Because we believe that together, we can shift from the necessity of emergency aid to building and believing in a community where everyone has enough, and where we all support each other.

Please support the Hub and help us hold our community well as we prepare for 2023.