In Langley, Washington, the South Whidbey School Farm and Gardens are bringing food and education together for their students. Children of all ages are learning about growing, cooking and tasting food, and the gardens are funneling produce into the school's lunch program. They have also created an apprenticeship program in community food production and garden-based education. Never have growing and learning seemed so beautifully entwined, as Liza can attest!

When did you know that you wanted to work in food? 

Food has always been the center point of gatherings in my family. We always sat down together for dinner without tv or any other distractions.

I missed the rhythm of sharing food with family when I was attending college. I had the opportunity to take a cooking course once a week for three hours. We worked in pairs to adapt given recipes and prepare them to share with the rest of the class. Our lab consisted of tasting at least three different groups dishes, providing a taste profile and detecting the differences in the finished product. What I found most instrumental in this course, is that for the last 45 minutes we all sat down together talking about our week's readings and discussed the little nuances that each group brought to the table through their dish. This class reminded me of the importance of uninterrupted meals and discussion time which is often neglected in everyday life. It was also the turning point that prompted me to focus my studies on food systems.

Over the last few years, I have come across several adults that don't like eating vegetables. This sparked my interest in how our tastebuds and food choices are developed as children. Ultimately, it brought together my passions to bridge the gap of healthy food and enjoyment through exposing children to many different types of vegetables in as many forms as possible. If I can engage with children so that they actually want to eat kale and ground cherries and tomatoes, I feel my job has been successful.

How did you get your current good food job?

I found my apprenticeship/job listed on the Tufts Food System Employment opportunities list serve which sends out emails every day at 12:00am EST. Since completing the apprenticeship I have stayed on as an employee, hired to create a new culinary arts program where we cook with kids in addition to gardening with them.

How did your previous work or life experience prepare you for a good food job?

I have had the opportunity to work at a lot of wonderful good food jobs in many areas of the food system. I have experience working in restaurants both front and back of the house, farmers markets, coops and farm education which has given me a wider perspective on the food system. This has enabled me to expand my creativity by developing new curriculum for the elementary school students. In my post-college years, I have had some great supervisors and some less-than-stellar ones. These different managerial styles and experiences have given me insight on the kind of leader I want to be and provided me with the determination to develop those qualities in myself. In my current job at the school farm I have been able to facilitate volunteer work parties as well as classroom volunteers for our garden classes.

What was the greatest obstacle you had to overcome in pursuing your Good Food Job dream? 

After college I jumped strait into seasonal work; farm education in the growing season and ski instructing/kitchen work in the winter. This lifestyle became stressful because I was moving to a new place at the start of both seasons. The emotional rollercoaster of moving twice a year has has taught me the importance of being open to meeting new people and exploring new places. Being true to myself throughout these moves enabled me to welcome amazing people into my life and led to exploration of new areas. I learned to take care of my personal needs by finding happiness wherever I ended up. The connections I have made and maintained with other folks also working Good Food Jobs have kept my motivation and perseverance high for working in the food system.

Name one positive thing that a former employer taught you that you continue to appreciate? 

One of the farms I worked with offered bi-weekly or monthly farm meetings. In these meetings we would go over all of the usual meeting materials that were needed, but we also had an educational component to the meeting. It was a big farm with many amazing moving pieces. Each meeting we would have a learning focus on something outside of our daily work practices. This manager helped me and the farm crew stay engaged and excited about expanding our knowledge base, and that helped us to avoid getting in a rut at work.

What can you identify as the greatest opportunities in food right now? 

Widespread community involvement in food. There are so many initiatives out there teaching people about growing food for their neighborhood. I am involved in growing food on the old baseball field of the public elementary school. We are teaching kids how to successfully grow healthy and tastier food. The hope is that providing time outside, working with the dirt and enjoying yummy garden nibbles will bring motivation in later years to contribute to the greater community and growing food for those in need.

I also really enjoy reading the Modern Farmer Magazine, especially now that I have decided to devote my life to working in food education. There are amazing things happening in the agricultural world and sometimes the struggles of a project can get me down. Reading about amazing projects happening around the nation/world keeps me inspired and gives me new ideas for curriculum and program development.

If you could be compensated for your work with something other than money, what would it be?

Potlucks, yoga, good friends, thoughtful discussions and farmers markets.