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WASHINGTON — Entrepreneurs in the 7th and 8th Wards have a chance to turn their dreams into businesses thanks to a relatively new grant program. Calvin “JR” Hines is doing just that.
For the past three years, DC has hosted the Dream Pitch program. It fosters a learning group from entrepreneurs and experts from across the city who are working to build their businesses.
It culminates in a pitch contest, where grants are awarded.
Hines was last year’s winner.
He’s putting his winnings into a mobile farm. It’s sitting on his front lawn.
“Our vision for the future is that Wards 7 and 8 will actually become the urban agriculture hub of D.C.,” Hines said. “And we want to have full coordination with our neighbors. So having mobility helps us get into the turf.”
It looks like a small shed with two doors, but Hines has equipped it with a generator, solar panels, and proper insulation and ventilation to grow his mushroom crop.
“The barriers to entry are easier than they used to be, and we can control the climate. And they’re proving to be profitable,” he said. “As you can see, in our proof of concept behind this, everything from the humidity to the temperature to the lighting is climate controlled, so there’s very little chance of an accident.”
The first step in realizing Hines’ dream of an urban agriculture center was starting EightFold Farms DC in 2017.
“Go back to 2017, when you were frustrated with the four-mile trip to buy groceries, and you were frustrated by the four-mile trip to go get groceries. And then there was the idea of an international model that could be used to stimulate the local economy and increase access to food. “We started looking at other initiatives, but at the same time, it was profitable. And that’s when our eco-farm was born,” he said.
The DC grant is helping Hines take the next step with his mobile farm.
“So instead of just leaving those who are participating there, we come and see how the fund is working and what other needs they have. We are working hard to find them and continue to support them until the end,” the acting director said. Rosemary Suggs Evans of the Small Business and Regional Business Development Authority said:
So far, the program has awarded $1.5 million in Dream Grants to entrepreneurs, a spokesperson for her department said.
With the mobile farm nearly up and running, Hines is planting the seeds for a partnership with a nearby group, Fihankura Acoma Ntoaso (FAN).
“FAN is a youth-focused, peer-run center, which means we run programs for children who may be affected by the child welfare system,” said Executive Director Josephine Mazik. he said. “Our team has lived experience, so either we ourselves are involved in the system in some way, or have suffered some kind of traumatic experience in our lives that we are not opposed to sharing, or we are a biological Either they live with family members with whom they have no academic relationship.” Birth parents. ”
Hines and Mazik are working on an educational program to develop the next generation of producers called “From Farm to Table.”
“We teach kids mushroom cultivation and financial literacy,” Hines said. [that] They’re going to rise up and really pass that light on to the next generation. ”
He said he plans to start with five to eight kids in fifth grade and work with them until graduation.
“Long term, I think this plan is going to change the landscape for the 8th Ward community,” Majik said. “It not only provides different aspects of food and tackles the food insecurity challenges that we are working on here, but it also provides employment and employment and restores the vitality of the economy.”
One potential participant is Jayla Johnson, a ninth-grader who participates in FAN.
“I think it’s good to learn and it’s fun because it’s always good to learn something new and have something new in your book that you can experience and share with others. ” said Johnson.
This sharing in the classroom and on the farm is what Hines hopes to reap.
“I always say, we grow food to grow community,” he said.
The goal is to open the mobile farm in April.
He said the “From Farm to Table” partnership program will be launched on February 19th.
Applications for the Dream Pitch program are being accepted until March 1st.
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RELATED: Shenandoah Seasonal Farm uses tunnel farming to extend growing season
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