Serving An Underserved Community The Right Way
Slipstream District Topic, 23d ago
What Christopher Bradshaw and the team at Dreaming Out Loud built in Washington DC really got to me. In a neighborhood where people have gone without proper access to grocery stores for years, they found a way to provide a badly needed service that feels thoughtful, welcoming, and connected to the people who actually live there.
The Marion Barry Avenue Market and Cafe is a community space built with real care for the neighborhood. Fresh food, local products, jobs, people gathering together, all of it coming from a genuine desire to serve an underserved community the right way, with heart behind it.
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Well Street
This store is like a much-needed rain in a desert, or in this case, a food desert.
Corporate supermarkets, deeming profit margins too low in underserved areas, stay away, leaving fast-food restaurants as a primary source of meals.
Dreaming Out Loud is a great name and a great organization. I hope that, despite the challenges they face, their moral and righteous work will thrive.
Slipstream
Too many people have to struggle to be seen and heard. I hope other cities with the same issue looks to them as a role model.
Homeless Valley
Wow. This looks like a nice, upscale grocery store. I'm so happy for this community. It's not fair for anyone to live in a food desert, but it's a reality. Chain supermarkets are not interested in building community, or helping the underserved. This organization cares about the people who live here and made everyone's dream come true. I hope they spread their wings into other food desserts, or at least share their business model for other communities to copy.
Slipstream
I agree, welcoming atmosphere, nice vibe.