In 2017, Deonte Ward traveled to Baltimore to speak at an event following the death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray, who died in Baltimore police custody, which sparked days of unrest and calls for police reform.
Ward, a former Woodside Gardens resident, had intended to contribute to the conversation about community building but left the city determined to follow through on his plan to establish a community garden within a subsidized housing community in Annapolis.
“Despite all the negative events that happened with the Freddie Gray incident, this community had a vibrant garden. The residents were very active,” he said. “I've already[stood] Food insecurity in my city. We're not Baltimore City, but the farming concept can be very successful in a small city like Annapolis.”
A year later, two community gardens have been built at Woodside Gardens in Ward 4 and Eastport Terrace/Harbor Houses in Ward 8 to reduce the community's reliance on government assistance programs and provide a place for the community to gather. Funding for the garden at Woodside Gardens comes from two Annapolis nonprofits, Newtown Community Development Corporation and Superior Future. The garden in Eastport does not receive a grant.
Peas, green beans, peppers, corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, beets, cabbage and a variety of herbs are all grown in Woodside Gardens, Eastport and Bywater communities for residents to enjoy free of charge. The produce is grown from seed or, in Eastport, from dying plants that have been revived and donated by individuals and businesses in the community.
According to the civic group, the Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County, Eastport is one of seven food deserts in Anne Arundel County — along with Glen Burnie, Brooklyn Park, Linthicum Heights, Fort Meade, Jessup and Severn — defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as areas without easy access to fresh, healthy and affordable food.
When Harbor House resident Heaven White learned that her neighborhood was classified as a food desert, it inspired her to distribute fresh produce to residents of Eastport Terrace and Harbor House, and their garden has also become a way to help heal the community from gun violence.
“We have seen so many lives lost. [in Eastport]It feels good to breathe life into it [to the community]” said White.
Latasha Hurley, a Bywater resident and founder of local nonprofit One Annapolis, opened a garden in Bywater in 2021. She said she wants her garden to be a hub where Annapolis-area residents can come together and learn about gardening with native plants and why it's important to the environment.
“It's a model of sustainability, self-efficacy and self-sufficiency,” she said.
There are several food pantries in the Annapolis area, including a pending one that recently received federal approval to be set up in a vacant unit at the Harbor House community, which is managed by the Annapolis Housing Authority.
Ward said he would like to see the community become more food self-sufficient to reduce reliance on grocery stores and food pantries.
