By Angela Madaras
Prior to Covid-life, the Local Food Summit event took place with food diversity and food justice being the main focus. I had the pleasure of sitting with speaker, Melissa Milton-Pung, who represented a program she created in conjunction with the county’s Heritage Tourism department. The tour is called the Foodways Heritage Tour and there is a recipe guide online for those interested in our counties rich and bountiful cultural heritage.
The tour includes recipes from African Americans, Germans, and even the women’s suffragette movement. The tour doesn’t just focus on cuisine though, it also teaches the historical relevance these groups of people in different times gifted to our amazing community, things that make Washtenaw county so unique and vibrant today. The tour also includes buildings which have historical connections to each movement, culture, and social movements. I asked Milton-Pung why she felt the Foodways program was important to the local food movement of today. “The piece which is particularly powerful is the concept of cultural transference through food gathering, preparation, and social interaction around the table,” she answered. “Not only does a member of a family or community directly experience the tangible joys of these actions, tastes, and smells, they also learn about the identities and traditions closely connected to these dishes, sparking ongoing conversations and understanding between generations, families, and community members. It’s really powerful.”
The Washtenaw Heritage Foodways Tour was part of a project Milton-Pung built along with staff member Melinda Schmidt (who is now staff at Washtenaw County Historical Preservation). The two women researched, tested, and created the program over the course of many years. The tour highlights local food traditions, featuring the foods from many eras and groups local to the area, including the First Peoples/Native Americans and early European settlers through the Abolitionist Movement, World War II, and recent social changes that mark the 20th century.
It is my distinct belief that food brings people together in ways nothing else does. Stories arise from sharing meals and cooking food together. Even in Covid times we can still share our recipes, backgrounds, heritage, and diversity online, in safe outdoor settings, within a small family bubble, or through social media and podcasts. Foodways is a great project that deserves your attention and time. I learned so much that I never would have known until I said hello to Melissa Milton-Pung!
You can learn more about the Foodways tour by visiting the program online at www.washtenaw.org/637/Heritage-Tourism. Learn more about Food Summit 2021 at localfoodsummit.org.
Madaras’s way of giving voice to food is through the Crazy Wisdom Community Journal and The CW Weekly. We invite you to contribute your own food memories, present day foodie tricks of the trade, recipes, family meal ideas, and anything that can expand our knowledge and sensitivity. Send your submission to jennifer@crazywisdom.net.
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Prior to Covid-life, the Local Food Summit event took place with food diversity and food justice being the main focus. I had the pleasure of sitting with speaker, Melissa Milton-Pung, who represented a program she created in conjunction with the county’s Heritage Tourism department. The tour is called the Foodways Heritage Tour and there is a recipe guide online for those interested in our counties rich and bountiful cultural heritage.