https://lenasvisions.wixsite.com/from-the-ground-up-f, http://fromthegroundupfoods1.com/

From the Ground Up Foods, 3202 E 42nd Street, Indianapolis, IN (2026)

09/04/2026

🌱 THE STORY OF THE FARM — PART 3: THE LAND REMEMBERS

When I started From the Ground Up Foods, my goal was to grow food on the property and create something that could serve the community.

But as an anthropologist, I also knew I needed to understand the land before deciding what its future should look like.

So I started asking questions:

What was this place before us? Who used this land? What did this neighborhood look like? And what stories are still here?

What I discovered is that agriculture isn’t something we’re bringing to this property—it’s part of its history.

This land is connected to former IPS School 11 and Robert’s Dairy Farm - part of a landscape where farming, food production, and community were once woven into everyday life.

While researching the Meadows area I found Sanborn maps for the school and Robert's Dairy Farm. I was intrigued when I saw the phrases...

- “Property untouched by industrialization.”

- "Outside of Corporate Limits

- "No exposure on any side."

Those phrases gave me hope that the land was farmable. Our soil tests confirmed we had healthy soil to grow our crops!

Today, we’re farming this land again. We’re not starting a completely new story - we’re continuing one.

From the dairy farm to the school, from the memories of the giant cow to the historic maps, this property has always been connected to the story of food, land, and community.

And now From the Ground Up Foods is part of that story.

That’s why preserving this history matters so much to me. As an anthropologist, I know how easily the stories of places disappear. Once the buildings are gone, once the people who remember them are gone, once the old maps and photographs are forgotten, we lose pieces of our collective memory.

I want to capture those stories while we still can—and we've honored them by putting this land back to work growing food for our community.

🌱 The history of this land is part of why this farm matters.

Your support helps us protect that history while building its future.

Help us continue to grow From the Ground Up Foods by supportung our upcoming documentary on Inside Success!

https://gofund.me/a59b080fe

Part 4: The Giant Cow 🐄 - coming soon…

08/31/2026

From Case Management to Food Access 🌿

I didn't set out to become a farmer. 👩🏾‍🌾

I was a case manager trying to help people survive.

After that work, I joined United Northeast Community Development Corporation (UNEC CDC), which put me at tables where community members were talking about our food access needs.

I heard residents talk about spoiled food boxes—including at a meeting with a Gleaners neighborhood advocate.

And I remember Anthoney Hampton confronting Milele Kennedy at Edna Martin about spoiled food boxes. 😂 Hopefully they've reconciled by now! 😆

Those conversations highlighted a serious problem:

We needed to rebuild our food ecosystem.

My work on the EFAI planning committee helped lead to funding for a fully functional urban farm at the School 11 property—the same place where this journey began.

That led me and my partners to develop meal kits with everything needed to make a complete meal, along with recipes and healthy snacks. Our kits are delivered to neighbors addressing chronic diseases including diabetes and heart disease.

Today, From the Ground Up Foods is bringing together farming, food access, meal kits, wellness and economic opportunity.

🎥 I'm raising funds for a documentary to take our story national and connect us with the support, partnerships and funding needed to sustain and grow the business.

Because we don't want to grow just to grow.

We want to grow so we can serve more people.

Please donate if you can, and share this post.

🌱 From the Ground Up. For our community. For the future.

08/29/2026

Where It Started:

When Pastor Denell Howard first showed me the old IPS School 11 property on the Northeast side of Indianapolis, he took me on a walk up 42nd Street to the Meadows Apartments.

It was 2021.

The Meadows was partially abandoned, but people were still living there. Doors and windows were boarded up. Folks were running generators for electricity and pumping water out of their units.

And yet, life was still happening.

I remember a Latino family who had recently moved into a house on the corner. They had tall stalks of corn growing along the side of their home.

That image stayed with me.

At the time, I was an outreach and housing case manager, and I knew firsthand what food scarcity looked like for our neighbors.

There weren't enough accessible sources of fresh, affordable food. Food insecurity wasn't just about having something to eat—it was about having nutritious food, the ingredients to prepare it, and the resources to make it last.

That walk helped me see that our community needed more than food boxes.

It needed a food ecosystem.

That realization became part of the foundation for From the Ground Up Foods.

Today, I'm raising funds for a documentary that will tell this story on a national level.

🎥 The goal isn't simply to make a film. It's to use the film to connect with national supporters, partners, funders and investors who can help us sustain and grow this business so we can continue providing for our community.

If you believe every community deserves access to fresh, healthy food, please consider donating—and share this post.

🌱 Help us take From the Ground Up from a local story to a national movement.

https://gofund.me/dfece7032

08/26/2026

🌿 Have you ever heard of lovage?

Lovage is a unique perennial herb with a bold flavor often described as celery—only stronger, sweeter, and more aromatic. Its leafy tops resemble celery, and the leaves, stems, roots, seeds, and even flowers can all be used in the kitchen.

A little goes a long way! Try chopping a few leaves into soups, stews, chicken dishes, potato salad, beans, or homemade stock for a rich, savory flavor. The seeds can be used much like celery seed in breads, pickles, and seasoning blends.

It is one of those old-fashioned herbs that deserves a place in more gardens and more kitchens. 🌱

Have you ever grown, heard of, or cooked with lovage? Tell us in the comments: what would you add it to first?

08/21/2026

Help us tell our story! We're bringing a story to the screen — one about resilience, community, and what's possible when neighbors grow together. From the Ground Up Foods is being featured in an Inside Success TV documentary, and we need YOUR help to make it happen! 🎥💚

Today we're asking you to be part of the story. Every gift — big or small — brings this film and this project closer to reality. 🎬✨

DONATE - SHARE - GROW WITH US
👉 https://gofund.me/c3690de2b

How it all started 🌱

Back in 2015, Pastor Denell Howard asked me to help turn a small lot outside his church on Hovey Street in Indianapolis into a community garden. I jumped at the chance to become more involved in local communities. We started with tomatoes, peppers, and a few herbs, and that little garden grew into the Garden of Help which the church members still maintain today. 👩‍🌾

In 2021 Pastor Howard presented me with another opportunity to grow when Hovey Street COC purchased a former IPS school building in the Avondale Meadows neighborhood. He provided me some land on the seven acre property to turn unused space into something that could feed a neighborhood. It was an empty field at that time. From there, From the Ground Up Foods was born — a Black and minority-owned urban farm bringing fresh produce, eggs, and garden education to families across Indianapolis.

🌾 Growing Through Hard Seasons 🌱

When COVID hit and food scarcity became a daily reality for so many families around us, that mission became even more urgent. I was working as a homeless and housing case manager and I was going to food pantries throughout the city and delivering food to my clients. This pushed us to lean harder into getting fresh produce into the hands of people who needed it most.

That same drive led me to step into work as a Community Builder for United Northeast Community Development Corporation, walking alongside neighbors, and helping connect people to resources far beyond just food.

This positioned me to serve on the strategic planning committee for the Equitable Food Access Initiative (EFAI), a $2.45 million effort helping build a more equitable food system for the Northeast Indianapolis neighborhoods. It's been a privilege to help shape that work, and to keep pushing toward a city where good food isn't a privilege — it's a right, for every neighborhood.

🔗 Learn more about EFAI here: https://www.equitablefoodaccess.org/about

This is our 6th year growing, and I couldn't have imagined then that we would have a successful Urban farm business. With the help of invaluable partnerships that have supported our mission to feed and nourish Indianapolis communities, we now have a thriving urban farm with a walking trail and meditation labyrinth, that has expand to multiple locations and serves the entire city!

Please like, donate and share! Every little bit helps us grow! 🌿
👉 https://gofund.me/c3690de2b

08/20/2026

🎬 From the Ground Up Foods — Thankful Thursday! 🌻

We're bringing a story to the screen! One about resilience, building a mission driven business, community, and what's possible when neighbors grow together.

From the Ground Up Foods is being featured in an Inside Success TV documentary, and I need YOUR help to make it happen! 🎥💚

This Thursday, I'm asking you to be part of the next chapter. Every gift — big or small — brings this film and this project closer to reality. We are so thankful for all the support we've received to make our business a success! 🎬✨

DONATE, SHARE, GROW WITH US!

👉 https://gofund.me/75bfb2f30

08/19/2026

🥕❤️ Yesterday was a beautiful reminder of what’s possible when a community comes together!

We had the privilege of preparing and delivering another round of From the Ground Up Foods meal kits to help put fresh, nutritious food into the hands of our neighbors. 🥬🍅🥚

These meal kits and deliveries are only possible because of the incredible partnerships that surround this work. We are so grateful for:

🤝 Faith, Hope, Love Community
🏥 Eskenazi Health
🌱 BGU — our co-op
🏙️ The City of Indianapolis Food Division

A special thank-you to the City of Indianapolis for the additional produce and food we received yesterday! That contribution made a real difference and allowed us to put even more fresh food into these meal kits and get it out into the community.

This is what food access looks like: farmers, community organizations, healthcare partners, cooperatives, and our city working together to make sure good food reaches the people who need it.

We are incredibly grateful for every partner who believes in this mission and helps us grow it. 🌱💚

Together, we’re growing more than food — we’re growing community.

08/19/2026

Topenga, my pet chicken has taken over my dog's bed! She chased Star through the house too! 😆

08/18/2026

Thank you Centers of Wellness for Urban Women and Rhonda L. Bayless for your generous donation and all your continued support! 😍

From the Ground Up Foods

09/04/2026

08/31/2026

08/29/2026

08/26/2026

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08/18/2026

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