Napier Heights Food Co-op Market reopens at Booker T. Washington Community Center
Fresh, locally grown food and handcrafted items are available for purchase.
MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Macon’s Historic Pleasant Hill neighborhood has had its share of struggles over the years, one of which was being classified as a food desert.
To combat this and help families in the area have more access to healthy food options, the Napier Heights Food Co-op Market made its return, moving from Tattnall Square to Booker T. Washington Community Center in Macon.
Fresh, locally grown food and handcrafted items are available for purchase.
The market is also seeking even more local vendors to join the fray.
Ashley Woodford, Market Manager for Napier Heights Food Co-op, told us about what made them make the move.
“We kind of wanted it closer to the people who needed it,” said Woodford. “I live down the street. I have neighbors, they’re not able to come to the grocery store, or they have to walk to different places. I’ll be driving to Kroger and I see my neighbors walking to Kroger, and that’s kind of a long walk for someone who’s 50 plus.”
Clifford Porter, one of the vendors who says he’s a jack of all trades, had plenty of wood-crafted items on his table that he made himself.
“I come here from Sparta everyday,” said Porter. “I do it all, I grow collard greens, cabbages, turnips, I got a big garden.”
Jope Pope, who’s retired, spends his days with his wife and children farming the land on his farm, Creekside Farm. He says creating the various food items he has for sale is always a family event.
“I’ve got a 15 acre farm and I spend most of my time there,” said Pope. “We raise sheep and vegetables. Yeah, it’s fun, you know, it’s challenging, but we enjoy it.”
We also spoke with Dr. Gloria Smith Cisse, CEO of The Southern Center for Choice Theory, about how having access to fresh food affects mental health in the community.
“We think about what they refer to as the social determinants of mental health, and one of the social determinants of mental health is having access to good quality food, whole food, fresh food,” said Dr. Cisse. “If we have the opportunity to put some things in this neighborhood that people can access, especially given that we have a partnership so that people can get, they can double their SNAP, then that’s what we got to do.”
The market accepts all major payment types, including EBT, and will be open every Thursday from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.
