We are excited to welcome Tina McKim of the Birchwood (neighborhood) Food Desert Fighters for our February ‘Hamster Church. Each month Echoes’ has a conversation with someone from our area to get to know them, to expand our awareness of movements and people here, and ultimately to become better neighbors. We believe this is church.

Tina McKim is a founding steering committee member of Birchwood Food Desert Fighters as well as the Bellingham Deaf and Disability Justice Coalition. Her work centers the most impacted and insists that solutions come from the ground up. She is an artist and writer whose family makes their home in the unceded territory of the Lummi and Nooksack peoples, striving to be good guests. Her dogs and garden are especially happy to have her home more often with the pandemic.

The Birchwood Food Desert Fighters: Are a group of neighbors and allies working to address the food desert created in Bellingham’s Birchwood neighborhood. We work to raise awareness of food desert issues in our community, to pressure Albertsons to end its noncompete clause (in effect until 2038!), and to promote greater food access and a sense of community by organizing food and garden sharing networks, community forums, and working together for a sustainable, culturally appropriate community-based solution for the old Albertson’s space. We want local businesses and ALL of our neighbor to thrive!

Sign the petition created by the Birchwood Food Desert Fighters here.

Tina will join us for a conversation on Streamyard that will be broadcast on our Facebook page, and can be viewed live or after the interview is completed.