Tyler and Sheila Viani show off their Bountiful Baskets they help to provide to residents of Mineral County. (Heidi Bunch photo)
As winter continues to keep its hold on the Nevada desert, boxes of fruits and vegetables fill the back of a boxed trailer.
Sheila and Tyler Viani, of Hawthorne, make the trip twice a month to bring Bountiful Baskets to the area.
Bountiful Baskets is a grassroots co-op that strive to bring the highest quality of products to individuals. Because it’s a small organization, the cost of the items are at rock bottom compared to shopping at a big box store.
Sheila quotes the Bountiful Basket slogan as to why she decided to bring this to Mineral County, “Bountiful Baskets slogan is, “Changing the world, one dinner table at a time.”
She goes on to say, “I wanted to give our community fresh fruits and vegetables at a low cost.”
Within a regular box, a mere $15 will get you such items as: brussel sprouts, zucchini, bananas, oranges, leaks and lettuce. If you’re an all organic family, for a minimal upgrade fee, the volunteers that put together the baskets will make sure that each item packed into your basket is chemical free.
For months, the Vianis have traveled back and forth to Fallon to sort; select and transport this commodity to Mineral County.
Even though Fallon has a larger population, Hawthorne was keeping up with the numbers distributed in Fallon. With that in mind, Sheila urged the founders of Bountiful Basket to get a donation drop-off in Hawthorne where the local coordinator can arrange for volunteers to meet the delivery truck; sort the produce and hand out the baskets to co-op participants on the selected date.
Mineral County customers were heard and the first delivery of baskets to our county will be this Saturday.
One local who purchases a basket each month says, “You can’t buy this fresh of produce in Hawthorne. The items are always top quality and for some reason, taste better than what you can get at the store. Because you don’t know what you are getting each time, it helps to get you out of a rut in the kitchen.”
Feeding a family can be done through the basket program. Kids learn the benefits of having healthy items within reach. Jessica Black-Tommila, a Bountiful volunteer, offers this advice to those with families, “If you find that your basket is not lasting for two weeks, purchase another one.” Because the items are fresh, the spoilage is less.
Not only does Bountiful Baskets offer fruits and vegetables at a reasonable cost, but you can also purchase gigantic tortillas; rolls; granola and flats of selected vegetables or fruit. (This week it is strawberries).
In order to participate, you must sign up on their website at: bountifulbaskets.org. Follow the steps; pick your drop off location as Hawthorne. An email will be sent to you, reminding you to order for the following week. The site states that in order to participate you must volunteer. Your help would be appreciated, but if unable, please do not let that keep you from getting the produce. “Deliveries are made on Saturday mornings. A receipt must be presented (either paper or electronic),” the site states.
For more information about Bountiful Baskets, contact Sheila Viani at 775-316-1551.
