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In the late 1880s, Jessica Mammarella ’s family owned a grocery store in the Italian Market near Christian Street. More than 120 years later, she and husband, Mike Cooper, are now selling produce from a Point Breeze garden.
With not one supermarket within the confines of Point Breeze, acquiring produce is a difficult task for some residents. Mammarella, who moved to the 1400 block of South 21st Street two years ago, has made fruits and vegetables more obtainable for her neighbors.
She planted a small garden last year and this year, received a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant to transform a vacant lot near her home into a green space filled with flowers, herbs, strawberries, eggplants, tomatoes, beets, radishes and more.
On days when Mammarella, a recent Temple University graduate, and her spouse sell their wares, they awake at about 6 a.m. to harvest and prepare the pickings for their afternoon stand stationed in from of their dwelling.
“Our neighbors really liked it and they would buy food from us,” the Northeast Philly native who moved to South Jersey at a young age, said. “We had a lot of neighborhood kids that would come over to the garden and plant seeds … It was really fun. That was actually the best part — having kids come over and plant.”
The 30-year-old even educated the youngsters, many of whom had never utilized their green thumbs before. One boy asked her, “does that grow a can?” as he pointed at collard greens.
“I was like ‘no, this is a plant we eat and you eat.’ He had eaten it before, but only from a can, so we sent him home with some for his family.”
The grant covers next year too, but after that, the plot is up in the air although she is looking to buy the City-owned lot and hopes to continue to garden in some way.
“Our motivation is just I love gardening,” she said. “I would do it no matter what even if it’s in a small pot. We see the future of Point Breeze as very bright and we feel we can move it along in that direction.”
Contact Managing Editor Amanda L. Snyder at asnyder@southphillyreview.com or ext. 117.
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Madeline Brinkman Louis DiRenzo Bonney DosSantos Andrew Emma Darren Fava
Sara Feinstein Greg Frangipani Gary Harkins Kelly Hile Mitch Little
Robert Malara Chris Menna Anton Moore John Murawski Cassie Plummer
Sue Posternock Michelle Rumbaugh Letty Santarelli Christy Santoro
Marianne Squillaciotti Walter Stewart Jennifer Swain Angelica Victoriano Joe Whelan
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