Our Daily Show Interview! Challenge Unlimited Parenting With Theodora & Soulcial Kitchen
Get The Latest News!
Don't miss our top stories and need-to-know news everyday in your inbox.
GODFREY - Theodora Farms and Challenge Unlimited have partnered to provide the dignity of good food and good work.
Theodora Farms, located in Godfrey, will launch their Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program this June. Members of the program will receive a box of fresh produce weekly or biweekly. Individuals who take part in Challenge Unlimited’s programs for folks with disabilities will package a second box of fresh produce, called a Blessing Box, to be donated to Alton’s Crisis Food Center.
“In today’s world, to put together a model that’s this innovative, I guarantee you there’s no one else in the entire state that is approaching any kind of level like this,” said John Becker, Challenge Unlimited’s Vice President of Operations. “It’s really the dignity of feeding folks with the dignity of work. We have people who are really excited.”
Becker and Jeff Adams, a representative with Theodora Farms, said the collaboration between Theodora Farms and Challenge Unlimited will allow more people to get fresh produce and work experience.
Adams noted that Theodora Farms previously partnered with the St. Louis Area Foodbank to provide fresh produce to Crisis Food Center, but federal funding freezes pushed them to reevaluate what they could do. Their response was the CSA program and corresponding Blessing Boxes.
They decided to partner with Challenge Unlimited to provide work opportunities for Riverbend residents with disabilities. Adams emphasized Theodora Farms’ commitment to supporting folks in the community through the Challenge Unlimited partnership and the Blessing Boxes donated to Crisis Food Center.
“This is something that our staff really, really believes in. It gives something for people to dedicate their time and really hard work,” Adams said. “I’m not out here sweating in July and fighting weeds just to necessarily make a paycheck. I also know that what I’m doing is supporting multiple different groups in our community. It’s supporting the folks at Challenge Unlimited to give them dignity in their day and their work, to be a part of Theodora Farms, to be a part of local agriculture. And it also supports our community members that are going through hard times.”
To become a CSA member, you can sign up online for a half share (biweekly boxes of food) or a full share (weekly boxes of food), which you will pick up at Theodora Farms in Godfrey starting on June 5, 2025. CSA members also receive a 10% discount at the Theodora Farms FarmStore. Adams asks those who are interested to sign up before May 17.
Becker added that this partnership will provide “the dignity of good work” to Challenge Unlimited clients. He is eager to see how the collaboration evolves as the summer begins.
“We’re really excited about this partnership because it provides opportunities that no one else is providing,” Becker added. “A lot of our folks want to give back. The only way to put it is they just want the same things that we do. They want to go out, they want to interact with folks, go to the library. But there are a number of people who want to work. What we are looking for is this model of bringing work into the facility where they can train, volunteer, give back. They’re going to be going out to Theodora Farms and they’re going to gain skills that they need for employment.”
Adams and Becker thanked John Michel, founder of Soulcial Kitchen and president of the Food is Love Foundation, for his work to forge the partnership between Theodora Farms and Challenge Unlimited. Becker said Michel was “the driver of this entire model.”
For more information about the CSA program and how to sign up, visit https://www.theodorafarms.com/csa. For more information about the partnerships between Challenge Unlimited, Theodora Farms, Fresh Harvest 365, LaMay’s Catering, and the Food is Love Foundation, click here.
