The community garden aims to serve 200 families, giving South L.A. residents access to fresh produce and more.
“It’s an honor, I’m humbled, I’m grateful that the community recognized me for things that I just normally do,” said Danny J. Bakewell, Sr., executive publisher of the L.A. Sentinel Newspaper and chairman of the board of the Brotherhood Crusade.
Recently, Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) presented a $75,000 donation to Brotherhood Crusade towards the creation of the new Danny J. Bakewell, Sr. Community Garden at the organization’s headquarters in South Los Angeles. Local officials such as Los Angeles City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Councilwoman Heather Hutt, representatives for L.A. Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell and Councilman Curren D. Price, family, friends and colleagues attended the event.
Related Stories:
https://lasentinel.net/brotherhood-crusade-gives-away-bikes-to-community-youth.html
https://lasentinel.net/brotherhood-crusade-hosts-swinging-for-a-cause-charity-golf-classic.html
“We at Brotherhood Crusade have been on the front lines for 56 years,” said Brotherhood Crusade CEO Charisse Bremond Weaver.
“More importantly, when you have a visionary leader named Danny J. Bakewell, who built this institution, you understand what love and care means every day of the year and so, this garden will be named the Danny J. Bakewell, Sr. Community Garden for his legacy, for his love, but more importantly, building this institution.”
Weaver continued, “This building is paid for so, do you understand what that means? That we don’t have a mortgage. Do you understand that this community garden will never go anywhere because we own the land?
“That only happens when you have exceptional leadership.”
“On smog alert days, I couldn’t go out and play with everybody else because I’d get so sick and a big part of that was because all of South L.A. was under greened,” said Harris-Dawson.
“We didn’t have the gardens, and we didn’t have the kind of plants, so putting this here makes a much bigger difference than any can count. The kids that will be able to come out of their house and play because this is here, that couldn’t otherwise and so, it’s a big deal to us.”
He continued, “We’ll be able to have parties here and events here and hang out here and just build the kind of community that we all deserve here.”
According to a study from the University of Southern California Dornsife, 1.4 million Angelenos lack access to sufficient and healthy food due to barriers like limited grocery stores or lack of public transportation creating food deserts, which are areas with severely limited access to affordable and good-quality fresh food. This community garden aims to serve 200 families, giving South L.A. residents access to fresh produce, a safe space and communal ground.
Bakewell’s leadership has made the Brotherhood Crusade a premier institution in the country. He served 35 years as president and chief executive officer of the grassroots organization, which is dedicated to improving the lives of low-income, underserved, under-represented and disenfranchised individuals.
He currently serves as chairman of the board of Brotherhood Crusade and was named one of Los Angeles’ Most Influential Leaders by the Los Angeles Times with a long history of social justice activism. Bakewell co-founded the National Black United Fund and has been a key figure in the Los Angeles Sentinel’s growth since his family purchased the paper in 2004.
He also founded the Taste of Soul Family Festival, which will be celebrating its 19th year having attracted over 500,000 people and hundreds of local businesses to Crenshaw Boulevard. The Danny J. Bakewell Sr. Primary Center in South L.A. is also named in his honor.
“In my role, I have the good fortune of building on communities and really leading and focusing on our partners at SoCalGas,” said Andy Carrasco, SoCalGas vice president of communications, local government and community affairs.
“We really are do the right thing, champion people and shape the future that really brings us to great partnerships like Brotherhood Crusade, which we’ve had the great fortune of having a great relationship for over 25 years.
“We’re going to continue to maintain commitments and partnerships to better the health of our community, our neighbors and everyone in between and it’s our privilege to have really come together here and really plant the seed no pun intended to really make this project possible.”
SoCalGas’ collaboration with Brotherhood Crusade is part of the company’s ASPIRE 2045 sustainability goals, which includes a plan to invest $50 million to drive positive change in diverse and underserved communities across five years.
“Brotherhood Crusade will always be my home,” said Hutt. “I early on volunteered for the Brotherhood Crusade under Danny Bakewell, Sr. as the president and then, many years with Charisse as the president and their goal is to nourish our community—that’s what it’s always been.
“I want to say thank you for everything that you’ve done for our community, and this is an offering of giving you your flowers in the act of plants, in food that nourishes the community and healing that nourishes the children and adults that are walking in this community.”
It will also help Brotherhood Crusade to expand its existing Teaching Gardens program, educating students on the importance of fresh produce and the healing power of natural plants like herbs and aloe vera. The garden will also be used for education programs, community receptions, and movie nights. The Danny J. Bakewell, Sr. Community Garden is anticipated to open in Spring 2025.
“It’s just important to me to serve the community,” said Bakewell. “This is all about service and the fact that you’re acknowledged for it is a plus.
“It’s not anything you’re looking for, but the fact that the community decides that you’re worthy, that is what makes my heart smile.”
