Late Summer Dinner at Healcrest with Grit & Grace

On September 7th 2014 at Healcrest Urban Farm located in Garfield,  Blue Collar will host its first ever participatory dinner in Pittsburgh.  The idea is simple. An all volunteer driven dinner to raise funds for groups trying to further the values of independence and hard work held so dearly by the denizens of our magnificent city. The dinner will be a three course dinner with drinks provided. Each guest will be provided 4 tokens representing 25% of their total donation. During the event each group will give an in depth performance showcasing their mission in Pittsburgh. At the end of the dinner the guests will give their tokens to the groups that they value the most. The chef for this particular dinner is chef de cuisine Curtis gamble of grit and grace and former executive chef at bread and wine in Chicago IL..

 

 

 

HEALCREST URBAN FARM – Healcrest Urban Farm  is a women-owned urban farm and social enterprise business.   Through nurturing  abandoned urban land we empower all people to reclaim, restore and sustain our collective knowledge and health.  We grow culinary and medicinal herbs, creating an oasis of wild and cultivated plants, using our platform  in the community to offer education on food, health, and healing.  We hand blend our herbs with local seasonal fruit creating supportive tea blends and delicious ice pops that we call Tea Pops, a vehicle to open everyone to the power of herbal medicine.  Healcrest is a place of healing- both the land and ourselves. 

 

 

 

 

GIRLS ROCK PGH -Girls rock pgh -Girls Rock! Pittsburgh is an empowerment program for female youths of all definitions, abilities and backgrounds. Girls Rock! Pittsburgh utilizes the process of making music to instill tools for amplifying self-confidence, creative expression, independent thinking, mutual respect and cooperation, while cultivating a supportive and inclusive community of peers and mentors. Girls Rock! Pittsburgh is committed to community awareness and social agency, fostering a network of role models for the endeavors of girls and women that promote social change amongst its diverse participants. Girls can play any kind of music they want. Creative voices of girls and women need to be amplified to create social change. Girls need positive role models and support for their creative endeavors. We can build a community where girls support each other rather than tear each other down. We can empower girls to recognize, understand, and respond to discrimination. “Girls Rock” is more than just a slogan.

 

 

HOMESTEAD BOYS CHOIR – AAMI Boys’ Choir, a positive community-based alternative, enables its members to experience the richness and excitement of creative expression. The benefits gained by the youth are discipline, confidence, motivation and the continual building of their self-esteem.  Additionally, the choir prepares members to be productive individuals allowing them to believe in themselves and their potential.  They learn the value of friendship and the importance of respecting self and others.

 

 

 

Founded in 1986, Just Harvest works in Allegheny County to change the unjust public policies that create hunger and poverty. Just Harvest is a membership-based non-profit organization that is mobilizing our community, connecting people to public benefits, and advocating for a stronger anti-poverty safety net, with the aim of economic justice for all.

 

You can register & choose your level of giving, for the

Late Summer Dinner@ Healcrest Urban Farm 

by heading to our events page 

REGISTER FOR DINNER NOW!

Chicks in the Hood Pittsburgh Urban Chicken Coop Tour

We’re excited to participate in Chicks in the Hood :: PGH Chicken Coop Tour 2014! WE’LL HAVE TEAPOPS! THIS SUNDAY SUZY’LL BE SLINGIN’ CICLES!!

Come by on Sunday and visit our feathered friends. Suzy is looking forward to showing you the coop, introducing you to the gals, and offer you TeaPop refreshment!

Tickets can be purchased the day of the tour at

• Commonplace Voluto www.commonplacecoffee.com at 5467 Penn Avenue in Friendship/Garfield;
• Tazza D’Oro  www.tazzadoro.com at 1125 North Highland Avenue in Highland Park;
• Animal Nature  www.animalnature.net at 7610 Forbes Avenue in Regent Square;
• Thompson 0.08 Acres at 1240 Resaca Place, Pittsburgh  15212;
• Choderwood at 7665 Lock Way West, Pittsburgh 15206, located at the Highland Park Dam at the intersection of Washington Boulevard and Allegheny River Boulevard.

A Rainy Day Photo Shoot!

By Michelle Soto

Meg and I thought we could use this rainy day to our advantage and show some photos of our muscle powered tools that we use to create the gardens.  As we were planning and budgeting to create new gardens and revitalize more green spaces at Healcrest, we made a decision to not rent heavy gas powered machinery and to invest in quality earth moving tools that we can use for years to come.

We still use lawn mowers for grass cutting, but pretty much everything else up at the farm is a hand tool.  This definitely increases the time and energy it takes to build a garden bed, but the finished products are high quality beds that will be around for years to come, completely free of knotweed roots, rocks, and anything else that might impede the growing process.

We’ve found that the beds that we built last year have needed a few wheelbarrows of compost of them and some leaf mulch in the aisles, but are free of invasive weeds.  The hard pan clay that is just right under our top soil was turned with compost last year and has matured into a dark rich layer of soil, perfect for growing.

Planting into these beds will continue for a few more weeks! Official volunteer days are on Sundays from 11-4.  We won’t make you jump on a broad fork for you can help some baby seedlings find a good home!

Michelle loves to use the little digging fork to turn earth

Meg attacks knotweed, clearing a new path through the woods

Michelle jumps on the broad fork, using all her body weight!

Meg is shifting soil with the brand new shifter that Suzy built or the farm

Hillcrest Steet Autumn Clean-Up

Please join us this Sunday, December 7th, 1-4pm for an Autumn Street Cleanup!
We would love your help lifting leaves, trimming trees, and general Fall time FUN!

Join Us at the Corner of Hillcrest St. and N. Pacific in Garfield, PGH.
Take a moment to enjoy the gardens and peaceful retreat of Healcrest Urban Farm.

*long sleeves, pants, boots, and gloves recommended*