by intern David Longo
Photo credit: Haley Schiffer
As a way of highlighting the new local food businesses in Washington, the DC Social Innovation Project (DCSIP) hosted an event at the trendy Hillyer Art Space.
Vendors included Los Verracos, I Heart U, Amore Gelato and more!
All proceeds were directly donated to DCSIP and go towards grants that support local programs that partake in social issues that are otherwise unavailable.
The DCSIP’s main project is to identify and invest in new, creative ideas that help to support problems in DC.
I Heart U: While serving vegan-friendly treats, co-owner Samin stated: “The bakery consists of my sisters and I. We originally began by making just organic treats at home and we decided to branch out. The reason for starting had to do with my sisters not wanting to give their kids sugars and bad things found in the local grocery stores. They would always be making things at home and get such great reviews about them, so we decided to start baking for other people!”
Amore Gelato (With A Heart): While serving a unique array of gelatos, owner Danica stated: “I wanted to create a product that excites and is new on the market and can actually be something that hasn’t been done before. I’m doing a series with alcohol gelatos (coffee Kuluha) that is sure to be a rare find. We are selling primarily online and are looking to doing house parties as well as deliveries too.”
Andrew Sommers (Host committee): “What got me involved with the DC Social Innovation Project was that I was looking for ways to get involved with the DC community and through a quick search I found out that at that time the foundation was just starting out.”
“I reached out,” Sommers added, “and wanted to know if there was any way I could help, and then I found out a little bit more about what they wanted to do. So that’s been my role, I’ve been helping each of the grantees to give them a team of 3 to 5 people that can support their new project. I hope we can continue to build off this in the future and I’m looking forward to seeing where we go from here.”
