Why Virginia Green Grocer?

My name is Rebecca Duncan and I am the Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and President of Virginia Green Grocer.

I graduated from Bridgewater College in 2020 with a B.S. in Political Science and a concentration in Public Policy.

After graduating, I initially planned to work as a public servant through the county or city. The Covid-19 pandemic, however, put my aspirations on hold due to the prolonged hiring freeze. During that time, I took a job in childcare but felt as though my heart was no longer in it. While working here, the idea of creating my own nonprofit came to mind.

With hunger rising among all communities during the pandemic, including my own, I decided that I wanted to address food insecurity by creating nonprofit grocery store(s) that would provide highly discounted products. These store(s) would utilize sustainably grown fresh produce, a hot deli, and a network of support by connecting social workers with individuals facing an array of financial challenges. I want Virginia Green Grocer to operate as a food bank that allows individuals facing difficult financial situations to be able to receive the items they need without being stigmatized and to receive a hot meal. We additionally plan to incorporate a section with lightly used items such as cookware, clothing, and books.

For those unable to pay, costs will be voided and they will be connected with a variety of resources through our network of social workers.

Because Virginia Green Grocer prides itself on producing sustainably grown fresh produce, Virginia Green Grocer hopes to purchase land in order to have and maintain a garden comprised of greenhouses, trees, and bushes to maintain a large enough inventory to provide a multitude of fresh produce options to the communities we serve. The Virginia Green Grocer hopes to engage a range of people, from individuals willing to provide monetary donations, physical donations, volunteers, and also engage those who enjoy home gardening in our Urban Gardeners Network.

Virginia Green Grocer hopes to launch our first physical locations (garden and storefront) in Roanoke, Virginia before expanding to other regions. Virginia Green Grocer is still very much in its early stages of development but we have a dedicated team coming together as well as board members. I am very confident in the ability of Virginia Green Grocer to become a well-established and recognized nonprofit organization. This has been a dream of mine for months now and seeing it begin to take off has allowed me to find my way to serve as a public servant committed to providing services to address the welfare of my community and others.

I am very grateful for this journey and watching our success take off as a result of it. Come check us out!