FARMINGTON—The Greater Franklin Food Council is pleased to announce it has newly been recognized as a non-profit organization. Since 2020, GFFC has been fiscally sponsored by St. Joseph’s Church. The organization embarked on the process of becoming an independent charitable organization in December 2023 and was awarded non-profit status by the IRS in June 2024.
Greater Franklin Food Council serves to foster a robust local food system locally by supporting farmers, working in school gardens, and connecting the community to food resources. The school garden program, a signature project of the food council, was able to get started with the fiscal sponsorship of St. Joseph’s Church. The program is designed to help elementary schools turn outdoor spaces into powerful hands-on learning gardens that connect kids with food, spark their curiosity and support classroom curriculum. Laura Hoeft, the GFFC School Garden Coach, works in schools using a newly developed Growing Gardeners curriculum to align school garden activities with educational learning standards.
The Greater Franklin Food Council has also recently hired its first Executive Director, Erica Emery, who has served on the steering committee since its inception. “I’m really excited to continue to work with local partners to help address gaps in our local food system. We plan to build on the work we’ve been doing to help local farmers with networking and marketing, and we will get more involved in initiatives to help Franklin County become a more food secure county,” says Emery. “The steering committee is very glad to welcome Erica into the Executive Director role. This is an exciting new chapter for our organization, and having Erica as our Executive Director will help GFFC meet many of our goals more independently. Erica’s work has helped build GFFC into the organization it is today, and we are excited for her growth in this role,” says Greater Franklin Food Council chair Bella Russo. Upcoming events include the annual Potato Fundraiser in mid-November and the annual Holiday Food Hall on Friday, December 13.
The Greater Franklin Food Council steering committee is composed of Bella Russo, Nick Rowley, Merrie Woodworth, Sarah Martin, Bessa Axelrod, Chris Hollingsworth, and Rosemary Cummings. Learn more about the Greater Franklin Food Council Local Food Plan on GFFC’s website at www.
