Incredible Edible Shed, Free Food Festival win Awesome support

Rick Zimmerman and a panel of nine other trustees get ready to hear the food-focused pitches.

Five finalists vied for a $2,000 prize at Saturday’s Awesome PEC & Slow Food the County Pitch Party at Mount Tabor Playhouse in Milford.

Shannon Colson and Keri Nelson

The winning idea was presented by Shannon Colson and Keri Nelson, members of The County Community Gardens Group. They propose a sustainable, natural building be erected in Delhi Park incorporating a vertical vegetable garden as part of teaching gardens. The project will happen in two phases, with the first phase expected to begin this summer.

In a surprise move, the Awesome trustees announced commitment to help raise funds to ensure a second project: Feast, the County Free Food Festival, will also go forward.

Rick Zimmerman with Christine Renaud

Project-lead Christine Renaud, of Foods Not Bombs PEC, hopes the first edition of this “food for everybody” event, with a focus on education and accessibility to tasty, inexpensive, healthy food, will take place in late August 2016.

It was noted both projects will require additional funds and many volunteer hours.

AwesomePEC received a record 14 project submissions by the Feb. 1 deadline. For this round the group partnered with Slow Food The County who also contributed $1,000 to double the size of the grant. The next deadline for applications is May 1, 2016. Visit awesomepec.ca for details