Hey y’all, my name is Chioma Ugwonali (she, her), and I call Texas my home. I am a prospective Sociology major hoping to earn a certificate in Global Health and Health Policy while taking several courses in the Environmental Studies department. I have had the pleasure of spending this summer hanging out with my family, connecting with friends and mentors, exploring the outdoors, as well as realizing a dream of mine: Offering a justice-led empowerment resource for a community that wants and needs it.
Using grant funding from the Princeton Class of 1978 Foundation, I spent approximately nine weeks organizing a self-designed mutual aid cookout to connect people living on the Southside of Fort Worth, Texas, with local organizations that will help them secure long-term healthy food access and promote well-being. Throughout the process, I relied on feedback from my two advisors, both of whom are deeply rooted in the Southside and neighboring communities, as well as other committed leaders who already do incredible work in the area. I did my best to cultivate an event that would not only be fun, but also beneficial and additive upon the beautiful support network on the Southside.
Guests ordering and picking up their meals from vegan restaurant Compatible Delights.
On Saturday, July 17, 2021, my volunteers and I welcomed about 120 guests, the majority of whom were residents and people experiencing homelessness on the Southside, to Roots Community Cookout. We served over 150 nutrition-dense meals prepared by local Black- and/or Latinx-owned food trucks and restaurants. We had music, free snow cones, a shaded dining area, and plenty of snacks such as popcorn, turkey jerky, and mixed nuts. The Texas heat did not stop people from coming through! Guests met with a number of representatives whose grassroots organizations practice trauma-informed care and intervention, share cultural knowledge about sustainable gardening, have free community pantries, and offer ministerial services for those who are unhoused. Registration for SNAP, Medicare, Medicaid, and WIC benefits was also available on site. In addition, I curated a brochure listing local organizations that help to address individual’s food, housing, legal, and health needs which was available as a take-home document.
Photographer credit: Johnny Lewis.
Besides organizing and executing the cookout, I raised over 1,100 USD to donate to the organizations that had representatives at the event. We were also able to donate 1,125 USD to young Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) empowerment through gardening with the organization AfroGreen’D.
The Cookout inspired profound reflection on the ways in which the United States’ housing, healthcare, and educational systems exploit, criminalize, then abandon the most vulnerable among us. I am grateful for the opportunity to listen to people’s lived experiences navigating these oppressive structures and feel galvanized to leverage my privilege for their welfare. I am immensely appreciative of my advisors, community partners, and the 1978 Foundation for helping me with this endeavor, which will certainly not be my last act.
