Nonprofit’s anniversary highlights a growing food ecosystem connecting agriculture, healthy food access and economic opportunity in DC Wards 7 and 8
WASHINGTON, DC, VA, UNITED STATES, October 9, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Dreaming Out Loud (DOL) celebrated the one-year anniversary of the Marion Barry Avenue Market & Café in Historic Anacostia on September 27, 2026, marking continued investment in community-controlled food infrastructure across Wards 7 and 8. One Year of Impact celebrations continue through year’s end, including a discussion on community impact at the 14th Annual Black Urban Gardeners (BUGs) National Conference and a community Fall Festival on October 31, 2026.
The Market & Café brings fresh produce, groceries, prepared foods and café offerings together in a neighborhood gathering place. Residents connect with local farmers and food businesses through a space that supports community engagement, entrepreneurship and economic growth.
Its anniversary reflects DOL’s broader work to move food, resources, and opportunity through communities East of the Anacostia River.
“Marion Barry is synonymous with transformation and inspiration,” said Chris Bradshaw, Founder and Executive Director of Dreaming Out Loud. “The Marion Barry Avenue Market & Café is a community food space for transforming the status quo as we work to end food apartheid. It is not only about access to fresh, local food. It is about economic development, community ownership and an inspiring vision for holistic community health.”
Growing From Soil to Plate
DOL continues strengthening the infrastructure connecting how food is grown, sourced, distributed and prepared before reaching families.
The organization stewards the Farm at Kelly Miller, the District’s largest production farm, and operates the Farm at Fort Stanton in Ward 8. These farms give residents opportunities to reconnect with land and agriculture while supplying produce for DOL markets, community-supported agriculture (CSA), culinary operations and community programs.
Through its Food Hub, DOL aggregates, procures, prepares and distributes food from its farms and regional farmers and producers. This approach expands market access for growers while moving locally sourced food into schools, community organizations, markets and households.
Farmers markets, CSA subscriptions, grocery delivery, food access programs and benefit-based purchasing options give residents multiple ways to obtain fresh food and support the local food economy.
The Market & Café now participates in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), giving residents another way to purchase food. This participation supports DOL’s work to connect neighborhood households with fresh food through accessible community markets and purchasing options.
Food as a Platform for Community
Throughout the year, DOL has brought residents, farmers, entrepreneurs, artists and partners together through festivals, Black August programming, food justice conversations, chess activations and neighborhood gatherings. These activities give people opportunities to eat, learn, celebrate and build relationships while participating in conversations about their communities. They also connect residents with the people and businesses shaping the local food system.
DOL’s Food as Medicine initiatives and partnerships further connect food access with health by putting nutritious, locally sourced food directly into the hands of families and community members.
Building a Community-Controlled Food Future
DOL’s work advances food sovereignty by strengthening communities’ power over the systems that produce and distribute food. Its vertically integrated approach connects land, farmers, food businesses, distribution, culinary operations and markets while supporting entrepreneurship, education and economic mobility.
As the Market & Café enters its second year, DOL plans to strengthen connections between farms and households, expand opportunities for farmers and food entrepreneurs, advance Food as Medicine initiatives and create pathways to employment. Residents’ participation in shaping the local food system remains central to that work.
“Dreaming Out Loud is proud to be a model for building a sustainable local food ecosystem with community at the center,” Bradshaw said. “We are growing food and community power while building the local infrastructure that keeps food, opportunity and economic value moving through our communities.”
About Dreaming Out Loud
Dreaming Out Loud is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit building a healthy, equitable and community-controlled food system. Through urban agriculture, distribution, markets, entrepreneurship, health initiatives and community programming, DOL connects food access with economic opportunity, culture, and community power particularly in communities East of the Anacostia River.
Media Contact:
Jaren Hill Lockridge, Comms@DreamingOutLoud.org
Jaren Hill Lockridge
Dreaming Out Loud
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