As a new year begins, Freida Graves, director of Food is Medicine for Faith CDC, is optimistic about what will come, starting with a grant that was distributed in December.
“We’re going to upgrade our equipment and general things on the farm, so we can increase capacity for this year,” Graves said. “We’ll be buying the tools and everything we need to continue to grow in the new year.”
On Monday, Faith CDC announced that it received an $8,000 grant from Farm Aid, a national organization that strengthens family farm agriculture, according to a news release from Faith CDC. The organization was founded in 1985 after the first Farm Aid concert with Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp, which raised awareness about the loss of family farms and raised funds to keep farm families on their land, according to the organization’s website.
Since then, Farm Aid has raised more than $85 million to promote strong family farms and agriculture.
“These organizations are the heart of the farm movement, with family farmers at the center of their work and leadership. We are so proud and grateful to stand with them,” Farm Aid Founder and President Willie Nelson said in a statement. “Like Farm Aid, many of these folks have been working since the 1980s to be crucial sources of strength for farmers and rural communities. This is especially important as farmers once again face trying times reminiscent of the crisis that gave rise to Farm Aid and the movement of which we’re a part.”
Willie Nelson raises his guitar during his performance at the first Farm Aid in Champaign, Illinois on Sept. 22, 1985. (Ernie Cox Jr./Chicago Tribune)
Faith CDC has received grants from Farm Aid for about three years, Graves said. She believes it’s important for the Gary organization to work with others like Farm Aid because it helps them grow and be sustainable.
“We don’t always want to be sustained by grants, but right now, we need to be sustained by a few grants,” Graves said. “We’re trying to move forward with food hubs and things so we can get to where we’re sustainable on our own, but right now it’s not a possibility.”
Because federal funding was more uncertain in 2025, Faith CDC received fewer grants last year, Graves said. Funding from organizations like Farm Aid is more important than ever, she added.
“We’re so grateful to them,” Grave said. “We are grateful for anything we can get, but we’re very grateful that they continue to support us.”
In 2026, Graves said Faith CDC officials are hopeful that more grant money will come in, and they will speak with local officials to identify the best opportunities.
Gary Mayor Eddie Melton and his administration are supportive of Faith CDC, Graves said, which helps the organization grow and is reflective of desires to rebuild the city.
This year, Graves and Faith CDC want to build a food educational hub to help teach Gary residents about nutrition and where their food comes from. The organization also plans to partner with local farmers to bring their food to different parts of Gary and Northwest Indiana.
Faith CDC officials also want to work more with insurance companies and schools to bring fresh, nutritional food to senior citizens and students.
“We want to go into the schools to teach the young people how to grow their own food, and then they could have that food in their cafeteria, and we could teach them that agriculture is always going to be needed,” Graves said.
Graves hopes that the city will continue to embrace Faith CDC’s mission and see the importance of locally grown, fresh food.
“We’re always going to need food,” she said. “We need to grow our own food and know where our own food comes from. It’s also a good way to refurbish our land and blighted places.”
mwilkins@chicagotribune.com
