FunkyTown Food Project was established in 2021 out of a desire to bring diverse groups of people together in community. Our co-founders, Cort DeHart and Kent Bradshaw, were troubled by the way people in our community were at odds with each other - or more accurately - were often not communicating at all.
At the same time, lack of access to healthy food was a growing concern, specifically in zip codes like 76104 whose ranking of having “the lowest life expectancy in the state” can be partially attributed to its location in a verified food desert. Inspired by the success and impact of The Food Project in Boston, Cort and Kent used its model to launch FunkyTown. Our values are rooted in a shared sense of community to empower youth and adults to grow healthy food, people, and environment. We believe that when people work together, sweat together, and grow something together, they also find ways to connect with each other.
Our Story
Food for thought
Why FunkyTown? There’s Cowtown, of course, and Panther City. But FunkyTown, a nickname dating back to 1986 when a deejay on R&B radio station KKDA-FM 104.5 christened the city Funky Town Fort Worth, just has a fun ring to it.
The farm
FunkyTown Food Project is hosted at Conundrum Farms, located just 15 minutes from downtown Fort Worth where the city skyline fades into the native prairie. A thriving, regenerative, low-till farm, Conundrum welcomes FunkyTown to help grow a variety of healthy produce, a percentage of which is distributed to local food banks and community pantries.
What We Do
At FunkyTown Food Project, we work at the intersection of youth, food, and community.
Youth
We offer paid internships for youth to work directly with our staff to grow and distribute produce and develop leadership skills. About 30% of interns return year after year to participate in our academic year programs, assume leadership roles, mentor the next class of interns, and lead community volunteer efforts.
FOOD
Roughly 1 in 4 children in Fort Worth face food insecurity. That's why we donate a percentage of our harvest each week to local agencies working to improve food access in our community. On the farm, interns explore the importance of good nutrition and dig into authentic culinary experiences using the food they help grow.
Community
As individuals, we work hard to discover who we are and to find our place in the greater community. As an organization, we build partnerships with Fort Worth community members, corporate and civic groups, and philanthropic organizations to make fresh, local, affordable food available to support the health and well-being of all.