Submitted By Guy L. Smith
This past week saw something very American happen here in our Greenwich community. A confluence of good work by the Greenwich Land Trust, Greenwich Community Gardens, with an assist from Historic Properties of Greenwich, brought about the highly successful 2026 Tour de Veggie.
The Tour de Veggie celebrates extraordinary vegetable gardens with much of the fresh and local produce being donated to our own local food bank, Neighbor to Neighbor. Record ticket sales brought garden admirers, even in the face of intermittent rains all day, to eight remarkable vegetable gardens in Greenwich. The 2026 Tour de Veggie will produce an abundance of fresh food for local food bank Neighbor to Neighbor to share with Greenwich residents who are enduring food insecurity.
A food bank? In Greenwich? A community with a per capita income for an individual resident at just over $125,000. Yes, Neighbor to Neighbor currently assists 2,297 Greenwich residents, an 18 percent increase from the prior year. But why in a community as well-off as Greenwich? A fraught political environment, persistent inflation, higher gas prices all contribute to food insecurity among the most vulnerable among us.
Sadly, also seriously impacting local food shortages among the poorest citizens are the unconscionable cutbacks in the SNAP program (food stamps) and the WIC (helps needy women and infants with food and nutrition) and school meals. Recent slashing by Washington cut 18,900 Connecticut children from the SNAP program. (By the way, if you think those cutbacks were OK you need to have a very long, serious look at yourself in the mirror!)
The Tour de Veggie was a real success because of the drive and energy of the Greenwichers who make up the Greenwich Land Trust, Greenwich Community Gardens, Historic Properties of Greenwich, and the host of local event sponsors who believe in the mission of helping our fellow citizens during times of stress. The work of all three of these organizations underpin the vibrancy and uniqueness of the Greenwich community.
The recipient organization, in this case Neighbor to Neighbor, rounds out what makes a community “complete.” And you don’ t have to be an expert gardener to assist Neighbor to Neighbor. Next time you are in the grocery, buy a couple more jars of peanut butter and mayo. Add a few cans of red kidney beans and a couple of packages of spaghetti.
Drop them off at Neighbor to Neighbor. Real people helping real people with real food. And of course, you can also write a check.
Either way you can personally make a tangible addition to the “completeness” of Greenwich.
Yeah: a food bank right here. Because it helps our neighbors right here in Greenwich. It’s American!
Guy L. Smith is a 42-year resident of Greenwich. The gardens of his spouse, Marjorie R. Smith, were one of the featured gardens on this year’s Tour de Veggie.