TOGETHER WE GROW, TOGETHER WE THRIVE

OUR MISSION

It is our mission to build community through food security and education (literacy) in order to break down barriers and promote complete health and wellbeing.

OUR PHILOSOPHY

  • Engaging more directly with your food as it is being grown (whether in your backyard, in a community garden, or even on your windowsill) creates healthier eating habits.
  • Cooking healthy and delicious meals can be easy and affordable, especially if you understand how to incorporate seasonal fresh food and how to reduce food waste.
  • Learning about growing, preparing, and preserving the food you eat builds confidence and connections. Food can bring people together.

OUR GOALS

1. We want to create a social platform that brings members of the Westview community and other communities together to build healthier eating habits that are maintainable in the long-term.

2. Since many aspects of eating are social (meeting friends at a restaurant, mindlessly snacking while watching movies together), we plan to redirect food’s characteristic of togetherness to benefit the community and the choices we make rather than to let these choices impact us negatively.

3. By creating a program that brings members of the community together to cook meals and learn about simple changes we can make to our regular eating habits, we can motivate each other to make healthier decisions in everyday life.

OUR BEGINNING

The climate in London was changing in the late 1960’s. A spirit of community was growing. It was at this time that Mary Barber, Assistant Librarian at the London Public Library, visited a library in Amsterdam that had incorporated a community development model. She returned with the idea that London should have such a centre, and began promoting the concept of a place that would house community activities, documents and agencies.

A committee was formed, including Mary, David Harvey, Peggy Bottom and Ormah Gibson, and a proposal was submitted to the Library Board. A site was found on Queens Avenue in 1974 and the London Community Resource Centre was launched!

The centre relocated to 388 Dundas Street in the autumn of 1978, where it remained until February 2005. Over the years, it housed over 100 charitable and non-profit organizations, providing a necessary launching pad for some organizations, supported by the expertise to be found within the centre. With a diversity of organizations under its roof, it provided one-stop shopping for many citizens seeking help. The centre initiated and developed numerous community projects and linked individuals with organizations and resources in the community.

Grow Cook Learn is the culmination of the food security projects undertaken by the London Community Resource Centre (LCRC). Since 2002, LCRC has facilitated a variety of community-based programs such as: London’s Community Gardens, Cook It Up, Collective Kitchens, Healthy Tidbits at the Food Bank, and Community Food Advisors. The Grow Cook Learn program builds on this experience to provide more options and opportunities for people to grow, prepare, preserve and enjoy locally grown fresh food.

LCRC envisions a community with resources that enable people to work together to improve their quality of life. Our mission is to improve our collective well being by bringing together individuals, organizations and resources to foster community action and create positive social change.

OUR TEAM

Tanya Sutherland

Program Coordinator

Grow Cook Learn

My journey with the London Community Resource Centre began in 2023. While completing my Bachelor of Science (Honours Specialization in Foods and Dietetics) at Western University, I reached out to LCRC to get involved with the community. Thanks to the incredible support of the Board of Directors, I was appointed Program Coordinator for Grow Cook Learn—a program that means the world to me.

I create and host our food-based cooking and growing workshops, and during the summer, I collaborate with our Canada Summer Jobs staff and Western University student placements to expand our food literacy outreach. The community is truly what makes these events so wonderful. I love watching our regulars grow their skills, build meaningful connections, and learn from one another.

My approach focuses heavily on hands-on participation and motivational interviewing, encouraging participants to dive in and come to their own conclusions. I believe everyone has valuable ideas to contribute, and that experiential learning is the absolute best way to grow.

A healthy, sustainable lifestyle is at the core of who I am. I am currently completing my Master of Science in Foods and Nutrition on the path to becoming a Registered Dietitian. Outside of work, I love practicing what I preach through extensive gardening, cooking, exercising, teaching yoga, and staying active with my two high-energy dogs.

Sam Dow

Operations Manager

Sam began working with the London Community Resource Centre in April 2016, as a maintenance worker cutting grass for the London Community Gardens. Since 2017, he has been the Operations Manager, overseeing all aspects of the organization, from day-to-day operations, implementing programs, grant-writing, and much more. 

Sam has a professional certificate from Western Continuing Studies in Not-For-Profit Management, and continues to pursue educational opportunities to further develop professionally. Outside of his work with LCRC, Sam is a self-published author and artist.