Gabriel's Place creates community marketplace in Avondale

An assortment of fresh produce lines a long table, while a cooking demonstration occurs in the adjacent kitchen. The dish: banana and apple muffins. This is the current setup for The Market, an event that takes place from 4 to 6 p.m. every Thursday at Gabriel’s Place in Avondale. 

Because of the wintery weather, most of The Market’s produce currently comes from Green B.E.A.N. Delivery; but on the grounds of Gabriel’s Place is a community garden that currently contains nine purchased plots and looks to grow in terms of both gardeners and food supply in 2013. 

Avondale’s only remaining grocery store closed in 2008, leaving the community without immediate access to fresh meats, fruits and vegetables. 

“The community of Avondale is considered a food desert,” says Dustin Lee, coordinator of both the garden and the market. “So Gabriel’s Place sprung up in the need for access and education around whole foods and healthy eating styles.” 

In addition to the work done in the community garden and market, the nonprofit hosts a free lunch twice a week through a program called Mom’s Meals. It also offers cooking classes to community members who hope to incorporate healthy dishes into their diets and homes. 

“It’s one thing to purchase things that you wouldn’t normally purchase, but then what do you do with them?" Lee says. "It’s another aspect of providing access to healthy food."

The vision for Gabriel’s Place is to continue to grow The Market. 

A chicken coop is currently under construction, so the nonprofit will also be able to offer fresh eggs. Additionally, an orchard project will begin in the spring so that community members can come together to grow and purchase affordable fresh fruit. 

Gabriel’s Place is also the proud owner of a hoop house, which is a greenhouse space that contains an aquaponics system. Lee refers to it as “a marriage of aquaculture and hydroponics.”

“It’s like raising fish and growing vegetables in one contained unit, so the fish waste is pumped up into the beds, and the little microorganisms that live in the grow medium convert that ammonia into useable chemicals for the plants," he says. "That filters out the harmful chemicals to the fish.” 

Once the aquaponics system is operable, the goal is to harvest the fish and have them ready to sell fresh at The Market. 

Lee says he knows it's difficult for individuals who rely on mass transit to secure healthy food items, so the idea of a community garden and fresh market in the heart of Avondale is ideal. 

“The hope is to be able to provide access and education around how to use these fresh food products, as well as give the people of Avondale a sense of pride in their community,” says Lee. “Hopefully we’ll see more people coming out and utilizing this place, because that’s what it’s for, the community.” 

Do Good:

• Volunteer or purchase a plot in the community garden. 

• Donate to support the work of Gabriel's Place.

• Connect with Gabriel's Place and share the organizatoin's page on Facebook.

By Brittany York 

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies.