West Glow Farm launches nonprofit to provide fresh food to families in need

West Glow Farm has launched a new nonprofit initiative aimed at providing fresh, locally grown food to families struggling with food insecurity following the recent federal government shutdown and suspension of SNAP benefits.

[Editor's note: The government reopened after President Trump signed a funding bill passed by Congress on Wednesday, Nov. 12. While delayed, SNAP benefits have been issued for the month of November.]

The new organization, called the West Glow Farm Community Fund, began its outreach on Oct. 28 by distributing produce bags, meat, granola and bread to families at Fall-Hamilton Elementary School in Nashville. The farm said it plans to continue providing food through the end of November and hopes to extend the effort through December, the close of its community-supported agriculture (CSA) season.

According to the farm, donations from local residents have been strong enough to sustain deliveries for 10 families through November. Organizers say they are 39 bags away from meeting their goal of funding food boxes through the end of the year.

“What began as a response to the government shutdown, and the subsequent loss of SNAP benefits for these families, has turned into the dream of a partnership between our farm and school communities,” the farm said in a statement announcing the new nonprofit. “We have launched The West Glow Farm Community Fund as a way to provide local, fresh organic produce to families in need, both as a response to the government shutdown and as a calling to help bridge the disconnect between people and their food.”

West Glow Farm plans to expand the program in 2026 by partnering with additional schools to create garden spaces and food education programs for students and their families. The initiative aims to teach children how to grow, harvest and prepare food during the school year, while maintaining gardens and sharing extra produce with families over the summer months.

Lori Dunlap, the school social worker at Fall-Hamilton Elementary, said the partnership is already having an impact.

“In public education we see daily the impact low-quality, highly processed food has on students’ growing brains, behavior and academic success,” Dunlap said. “To be able to ensure our most vulnerable students and their families have access to locally grown food is truly a gift — not only to their stomachs but to their long-term health and success.”

The West Glow Farm Community Fund will operate as a charitable outreach arm of the farm, continuing the business’s focus on sustainable agriculture through its CSA program, cooking classes and community events. Donations to the fund are tax-deductible and will help expand the school partnerships and educational programming.

More information about donating to the program is available here.