Gathering-Preventing cancer starts with small steps, we can help!

Oct 23

6 min read

Welcome to The Gathering

Hello, friends, and a special welcome to everyone joining us for the first time! We’re so glad you’re here.

The Gathering is our bi-weekly letter from Mint ‘N More Foundation. In each issue we share what’s growing in our community: practical ideas for healthier living, stories from the people and places that make this work possible, and ways to get involved.

This issue is a little reflective as Breast Cancer Awareness Month wraps up and we plan for 2027. We’ve been thinking about how health really grows and it doesn’t usually come from one big change. It comes from small, steady steps that add up over time: a shared meal, a garden bed, a conversation with a neighbor, a dollar spent on food grown just down the road. Those steps feed our bodies and minds, and they help care for the soil, water, and air we all share.

You don’t have to do it all to make a difference. You just have to start. Come to a class, stop by Gathered, say hello at an event, or reply to this email and tell us what matters to you.

We’d love to take the next step together.

Group photo of happy community gardeners

Practice | What we are growing and learning

Breast Cancer Awareness Month puts the spotlight on screening, and for good reason: catching cancer early makes a real difference in treatment outcomes. As the month comes to a close, we want to add a second question: why are so many of our neighbors getting sick in the first place?

Only a small share of breast cancers, and of cancers overall, are linked to inherited genes. The rest come from a complicated mix of factors that build up over a lifetime. These include what we eat, how we move, the stress we carry, the air and water around us, and how connected we are to one another. Iowa has one of the highest cancer rates in the country. Researchers are still working out the full picture, but we already know that screening and everyday lifestyle factors both matter.

That can feel overwhelming. So we lean on some ancient wisdom from Lao Tzu: "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." Small actions lead to results, and those results give us something to build on. That idea shapes our work at Mint 'N More Foundation. As we plan for 2027, we looked back at the steps we took this year and how each one connects to the bigger journey.

Eating Well

Gathered Local Foods Market opened. It’s a year-round place to buy fresh food grown by our neighbors.
Apples went to Pleasantville schools. It was our first step toward local food on school trays. Apples that usually travel hundreds of miles came from just down the road, and kids got talking about where their food comes from.
Recipes, cooking classes, and kitchen inspiration to help make fresh, local food an easy everyday choice.

Healthy Soil, Water, and Air

We’re supporting more farmers who grow food in ways that protect our soil, water, and air. Through Gathered, we’ve made it easier for eaters to vote with their dollars and back the producers who farm this way.
Fifteen grower education sessions taught people how to grow food in ways that build healthy soil and use fewer chemical inputs. They were informal and well loved, and many of you asked us to go deeper next year. We will.

Connection and Stress Relief

Time together (and in the garden!) lowers stress and builds the kind of support that keeps us well.

Events that brought people together, like our Tea Party, seed swap, farmer’s market outreach and classes. We have had over 500 attendees attend our more than 40 events in 2026.
We showed up in the community at Rotary, Kiwanis, the library, Rural Routes farm visits, and talks on organic growing and home food processing laws.
We built new and stronger partnerships with FFA, local ag and city leaders, senior living, and the Farm to Table crew.
We started listening. Our Community Health Survey (click here to add your voice) is gathering what you need and how you think about healthy eating, so our work can follow your lead.

None of these things will make headlines. A garden bed doesn't cure cancer, and a newsletter doesn't fix a water supply and tea party doesn't fix the divisiveness of our current political cycle. But healthy people come from healthy communities. Healthy communities grow out of good food, clean water, living soil, and neighbors who know each other's names and build common ground. Each small, steady step moves us closer.

It’s also why we are updating our purpose to Cultivating Health by Nourishing Soil. Soil is where it all starts: the food on our plates, the water we drink, the land we share. When we say health, we mean all of it. That includes body, mind, and spirit, and it includes the land and water too. We're tending the roots, and roots take time.

Thank you for growing with us this year. Grab a friend and bring them along the journey!

Gather | Community in Action

This space usually shares upcoming gatherings. This week, we want to celebrate the wonderful ways we've connected with our community over the past couple of weeks.

Connecting with Seniors Sosia hosted a pop-up market at The Residence of Knoxville, sharing local food options with residents. She also visited Homestead of Knoxville, where residents made paper pots, planted seeds, and swapped wonderful gardening stories. There's so much we can learn from our elders and pass along to younger generations!

Delivering Apples to Pleasantville Schools Kelsey reached out to several local schools to help them apply for Choose Iowa local food grants and an Iowa Food Systems Coalition grant to bring local apples to students for the Great Apple Crunch. Pleasantville Schools received both, and we delivered apples fresh from Schneider Orchard in Lacona for the kids to enjoy.

Wrapping Up the Knoxville Community Garden Sosia led our fall clean-up day, clearing out spent plants and reflecting on a fantastic first year. Many of our gardeners plan to return, and some are expanding their gardens at home. We're so proud of everything grown on what was once an empty lot. Friendships formed, confidence grew, and delicious food was enjoyed! We've also loved hearing from neighbors who watched the lot turn green and lush over the season.

Sharing Herbs with Knoxville Middle School The herb spiral in our Foodscape outside Gathered Local Foods Market has been bursting this fall. Kelsey shared its bounty with the Family and Consumer Science classes at Knoxville Middle School. Students saw, smelled, and tasted fresh herbs and learned how to use them at home for flavor and health. It sparked curiosity and joy in students and adults alike!

Take Root | Your Next Step

Monday, October 26 ·6pm · Knoxville Public Library

What if the most powerful health tool in your house is already in your kitchen?

Join us for the first session of our three-part Food Is Medicine series: Everyday food choices. A better understanding of your health.

Healthy eating can feel complicated. Join Tracy Bettis, RN, BSN, MPH, Population Health Leader and Certified Nutrition Coach, for an approachable look at the connections between what we eat, how we live, and our health.

In this session, you’ll explore:

Nutrition basics: Make sense of protein, fats, and carbohydrates.
Your gut microbiome: Discover the relationship between food and the microbes in your digestive system.
Balanced meals: Get whole-food ideas for breakfast, lunch, and supper that bring together protein, fiber, and healthy fats.
Food and inflammation: Explore how eating patterns relate to inflammation.
Symptoms and chronic disease:Understand where nutrition fits and when medical guidance matters.
From soil to table: Consider the connections among farming, soil health, and the food we eat.
Lifestyle as medicine: Look beyond the plate at everyday habits that support well-being.

Leave with meal ideas and practical steps you can consider putting into action.Bring your questions and your curiosity.

This is the start of a winter-long journey:

October: What Is Food Is Medicine? The why, and what it can do for you
January: Growing Food Is Medicine. How to grow your own healing foods, even in a small space
February: Cooking Food Is Medicine. Bringing it to the table with simple, nourishing recipes

Come to one, or come to all three. Bring a friend, a question, or just your curiosity. Register for free and all are welcome!

Turn learning into action:

Go hands on with our Healthy Holiday Sides cooking class on 11/5 where Kelsey will guide you through how to make holiday sides that are delicious, fun and nutritious!