We’d like to introduce you to a few of the many folks working hard to put food on our plates.
The past couple of years have served up tough challenges—a painful pandemic, economic distress, growing food insecurity, and a severe heat wave related to our climate crisis. And yet, in the midst of it all, people in the Portland area are stepping up and finding innovative ways of working, living, and feeding our community.
What follows are the stories of several remarkable individuals and organizations. Among them, you’ll meet an inventive local grower cultivating community, a Portland restaurant serving up love through Lebanese food, and a bee-keeper teaching care-taking skills to individuals recovering from addiction. You’ll also encounter a food-cart entrepreneur who found a way a creative way to thrive even among the devastation of the pandemic, and a unique grocery store dedicated to equitable working conditions for their employees.
Our UP community also served up reminiscences and recommendations for this project, as food is that rare substance that unites us all—it connects us with where we’ve come from and where we’d like to visit; it links us to our families, friends, and even strangers.
Overall, the stories we’ve gathered here are celebrations of human resourcefulness, adaptability, and innovation. They capture the resolve and open-heartedness of folks determined to help our community thrive. May these stories offer fresh inspiration for the challenges ahead.
Read Our Stories
Gina DiLisio is a graduating senior of the 2022 class at UP. She is an English major with double minors in Environmental Science and Constitutional Studies, and has worked as an RA in Kenna Hall whilst working on this project. She is passionate about all things culinary and has spent many hours making focaccia in the dorm.
Trini Sepulveda is an English and Psychology student graduating in 2023. She is a hoarder of words, loves to analyze any character that gets in her path, and has a passion to understand the human mind.
William is a senior political science major and English minor at the University of Portland. He was proudly born and raised in the “great city” of Vancouver, WA, and returns home nearly every week to see his family.
Outside of school, you can find him beating his housemates in video games, listening to newspaper articles via Audm and searching for Portland’s best cup of coffee.
Sloane is a junior Environmental Ethics & Policy and Philosophy double major at the University of Portland. She hails from Pleasant Hill, CA, where she loves to soak in the sun and cook for friends and family. When not holed up in the library, chances are she’s travelling inordinate distances for new food and drink experiences.
Mia is an English major at the University of Portland. She was born and raised in Portland, Oregon, and she loves to spend her free time hiking and finding new restaurants to eat at. After graduation, she hopes to become a comedy writer and spread love through laughter.
Maria is double majoring in Environmental Ethics & Policy and Philosophy at the University of Portland. She grew up in Fargo, North Dakota, where she enjoys spending time with family and watching sunsets or thunderstorms move across the prairie. You can find her in the chocolate aisle at the grocery store or out searching for new brunch spots around Portland.