The Food Equity Advisory Board (FEAB) is an engaged group of community champions who advocate on behalf of their peers to help promote a thriving, local food system that supports the wants and needs of the overall community — its health, environment, and economy. FEAB works to ensure every community member has a voice for positive, concrete change. It serves as a resource to connect community members with information and individuals that empower them to take action. FEAB works in partnership with the St. Louis Food Policy Coalition (STLFPC) to ensure the Coalition’s goals and projects are aligned with the true needs of the communities they serve and that those communities are being heard by businesses and organizations throughout the city.
A community champion is involved, passionate, and connected with the region they serve and the fight for food justice.
FEAB Community Champions:
Leah Burnett: Leah has been the Director or Early Learning Readiness and Beginning Babies with Books at the Monsanto YMCA for two years. Previously, Leah worked in corporate America and hated her job, so she decided to put her valuable skills to good use by volunteering in her community. Leah lives in the 26th ward where it is a complete food desert. There is no healthy food in walking distance and her family has to travel long distances to get access to healthy food. In 2017, she started volunteering at the Food Roof and the YMCA, where she discovered a forgotten garden. Leah immediately fell in love with the beautiful chaos of this space and made the decision to start fighting for food justice right then and there. From 2017 to today, the garden has gone from growing food in 5 beds to 30 beds. Leah completed the Master Gardening class last year and has applied those skills to her thriving garden.
Uyama Umana-Hollinshed: Uyama is a graduate from the University of Missouri St. Louis and proud to support the community of St. Louis. She is the owner of several businesses in St. Louis including, Nature’s Reserve, LLC, a natural soap and personal care product company, City Honey, LLC, a honey & beekeeping company that supports other beekeepers, and CitiFarm, LLC, a local farm that focuses on offering high-quality food accessibility. Gold Star Gallery located at 707 N. Euclid, St. Louis, MO is a boutique that sells personal care products, art, clothing, and other products from various local businesses. This boutique also had rentable space for others.
Rosetta Stanton: Rosetta has been an urban farmer for a little under 8 years in St. Louis and the surrounding areas. Over these years, she has led numerous gardening projects throughout St. Louis City and the surrounding counties. As a garden specialist and urban farmer, Rosetta has worked with other organizations such as the Women League of Voters to host the 2016 SLPS debates as a way to spread her knowledge and promote self-sustainability through farming and food. Rosetta has also assisted other local organizations and neighborhoods in starting and establishing gardens and farms through her Spring Garden Initiative that she promotes and leads annually. She is the proud owner of Sip & Grow, a social event that promotes gardening and growth, mentally, physically, financially, and spiritually. Rosetta is proud to take on a seat with Food Equity Advisor Board of the MCE and assist in tackling issues of food access.
Robert White: Robert White III is the grandson of sharecroppers from the Yazoo, Mississippi area. Though White isn’t currently a food grower, he recognizes that the ability to grow food exists within his genetic makeup. In his daily work with youth, he sees firsthand the correlation between food access/healthy food options (or lack thereof) and youth productivity and behavior. White experienced food apartheid firsthand growing up in a community without a local full-service grocery store to providing a fresh, affordable, and quality selection of produce. Wanting to bring awareness to and engage in work around lack of equitable access to food in urban innercity communities, he joined the Food Equity Advisory Board in December 2018.
Heru Adeleke: I am the founder and owner of Heru Urban Farming and Garden. I have been an Urban Farmer for over 5 years in the city of St. Louis. I am passionate about reversing food apartheid within our city and nationwide. I believe that everyone should have easy and affordable access to healthy food choices and water. I believe my job is to educate, demonstrate, advocate, and create ways to spread knowledge and resources towards a permaculture society.