Sharon DiLorenzo is a program manager for Capital Roots, whose vision for the future of the Capital Region is “where every person has access to fresh, affordable, healthy food.” The organization is also involved in urban forestry projects and partnerships. She has served multiple terms on the NYSUFC Board and will be presenting on the work of Capital Roots as part of the “Fruits of the Urban Forest” workshop on Saturday morning of the upcoming (July 14-16) conference in Saratoga Springs.
Sharon grew up in Schenectady County and has lived most of her adult life in the Capital District. “Growing up, my family was not oriented towards the outdoors. I came to that on my own when I was in my late teens and early 20s. I spent time in the Adirondacks—where my husband Peter and I still love to hike, canoe and camp—and I developed a keen interest in birding and in plants.”
She started out as a geology major at SUNY Oneonta, but found herself taking classes in ecology and natural history, biology, and plant sciences. After two years she transferred to SUNY ESF where she majored in environmental education and communication. “I loved my dendrology classes and the late Dr. Edwin Ketchledge, who made it fun and interesting. He really passed along that love and appreciation of trees,” she says.
Capital Roots community gardener picking beans in the fall. Photos Courtesy Capital Roots
Sharon graduated from SUNY ESF in 1985 and took a seasonal position as a naturalist at Glacier National Park in Montana, then spent some time on the West coast. She returned to the Capital Region and worked for a branch of a nonprofit conservation group for five years, then in 1992 got the job at Capital Roots, formerly known as Capital District Community Gardens, which had been founded in 1975. “It combined my love of plants and gardening with my interest in land conservation,” she says. “But the best part was helping urban residents grow their own healthy food and experience the joys of gardening. There was only one other person besides me at the time; I did everything from developing the community gardens, to bookkeeping, to fundraising,” she says. “A couple of years later Amy Klein came on as executive director; she brought a strong background in nonprofit management and an ambitious vision that has taken this organization and all the wonderful people who work here to the place it is now.”
The array of projects Capital Roots oversees is truly impressive, including 51 community gardens in four counties that collectively feed 4,000 families. Capital Roots has two mobile produce markets that provide access to fresh, affordable fruits and vegetables to Capital Region citizens living in food deserts; customers can pay with food stamps or other benefits, and local farmers have an outlet for some of their produce. Since 2004, the Squash Hunger program has donated more than three hundred and fifty thousand pounds of fresh produce to soup kitchens, shelters, and pantries throughout the region. Last year alone, Squash Hunger delivered 80,000 pounds of produce rescued from grocery stores, farms, and gardens to nearly 60 food pantries in the Capital Region.
from left: Troy Street Tree Advisory Board members Sharon DiLorenzo, Ben Larsen, and Jack Magai; former Troy Mayor Lou Rosamilia; and program supporter Jamie Vaugh, who is married to Ben Larsen. The tree, planted in 2015, was donated by Ben and Jamie’s landscaping company, Habitat Garden Design.
In 1989, Capital Roots initiated an Urban Greening program that resulted in more than 3000 trees being planted in Troy, Cohoes, and Rensselaer. “This is a small but important piece of Capital Roots’ programming,” Sharon says. “It’s been very limited in the past several years due to lack of funding. We have plantings coming up this fall and in the fall of 2017. Capital Roots and the Troy Street Tree Advisory Board will be working with high school students and other volunteers to plant trees throughout Troy.” The upcoming planting is made possible by a DEC Urban and Community Forestry Cost-Share Grant and by the in-kind services of the City of Troy.
Capital Roots has been the recipient of multiple DEC cost-share grants over the years. Asked what piece of advice she would give to new applicants, Sharon says, “Have a comprehensive program that engages the municipality, residents, businesses, school kids, and elected officials. Then you have people with a better understanding of the tree resource who will take ownership of and advocate for the trees. Don’t try to do it all by yourself.”
Sharon first got connected with ReLeaf back in the late 1990s; she has presented at conferences and helped with the ReLeaf conference the last time it was in Saratoga Springs. She has participated in some of the Forestry Awareness Days in Albany and serves on the Council Board. She values the way the Council keeps her abreast of issues in urban forestry and enjoys sharing ideas with urban foresters from around the State. “Right now we are dealing with EAB in Troy, and it’s a real loss to not be able to use ash trees anymore,” she says.
Here are the other programs at Capital Roots:
2005 – Established the Taste Good Series. Thousands of inner-city children have discovered that fresh fruits and vegetables are tasty and nutritious. “We encourage very young children to taste a variety of fruits and veggies through fun activities and tastings,” Sharon says. “Food was an important part of my Italian family growing up—we were always trying new things!”
2007 – Developed the Veggie Mobile – a year-round produce aisle on wheels that makes weekly market stops at senior and public housing sites, community centers, and health facilities around the region.
2009 – Cultivated the Produce Project. Dozens of high school youth have access to educational and employment opportunities each year because of this year-round urban agricultural training program. “Troy High students learn to grow and sell produce at farmers markets and food stands, and hone their job skills,” Sharon says. “They get a small stipend and a share of produce to take home.”
2011 – Organized the Healthy Stores program. Thousands of inner-city residents have daily access to fresh produce in local convenience stores. “We set the prices to ensure that it’s affordable,” Sharon says.
2011 – Expanded the Veggie Mobile by adding The Veggie Mobile Sprout – a smaller version of the Veggie Mobile providing even greater access to healthy fresh food.
2012 – Launched Veggie Rx in partnership with local physicians who treat patients with nutrition-related illnesses. Physicians are able to issue coupons for fresh produce on the Veggie Mobiles to patients with diabetes and hypertension.
2014 – Created the Virtual Veggie Mobile, an online farmer’s market providing access to local farm products for wholesale buyers and individuals who can pick up their orders at institutions like daycare centers and social service agencies.
2014 – Announced name change from Capital District Community Gardens to Capital Roots at the grand opening of the Urban Grow Center, our new green headquarters and regional food hub. With this new facility, by 2017 our produce distribution capacity will triple to one million pounds. “We reconstructed a 100-year-old building on the Hudson and made it as green as possible, including adding a solar array, a gray water collection system, and a rain garden,” she says. “We also used permeable pavement in our parking lot, and it’s pretty cool to watch the rainwater disappear into the pavement after a rainstorm!”