Food Justice Farm Dinner, Beech Hill Farm, 171 Beech Hill Rd, Mount Desert, Maine
Healthy Acadia and Impact Justice will once again host a dinner and conversation focused on food justice in Maine’s prisons and jails. The evening, held at College of the Atlantic’s Beech Hill Farm, will feature renowned guest speakers Maria Girouard and Randall Liberty and benefit Healthy Acadia’s Downeast Restorative Harvest project and Impact Justice’s Chefs in Prisons. The experiences and perspectives of these two outstanding individuals will engage diners in meaningful thought and conversation around topics of food justice. This, while they enjoy a beautiful and delicious meal featuring local foods and support two critically important food access and corrections projects.
A member of the Penobscot Nation, Maria Girouard is Executive Director of Wabanaki REACH. She holds a master’s degree in history from the University of Maine and is an historian with particular expertise in the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act. Maria is a longstanding community organizer and activist of environmental and social justice. She is a founder of The Peoples' Garden community garden at Penobscot Nation and dedicates many volunteer hours to community gardening. Maria is a 2015 recipient of the prestigious Maryann Hartman Award for her advocacy work on preserving the rights and cultural heritage of Penobscot Nation.
Randall Liberty is Commissioner of the Maine Department of Corrections and holds responsibilities to guide and manage administration of Maine’s adult and juvenile correctional facilities and programs. He is also a certified UMaine Extension Master Gardener and founder of the prison’s gardening program. Commissioner Liberty has more than 36 years of leadership experience in the fields of corrections and law enforcement, having served as the Warden of the Maine State Prison since 2015 where he has worked to reduce recidivism through enhanced programming, education and vocational training.
*** Limited public tickets are available for this event. For more information, please contact Development@HealthyAcadia.org. ***