Roxanne Jones

Our community gained an ancestor in Roxanne Jones. On December 23rd she transitioned after an extensive and brave battle with Cancer. Roxanne was our sister, our Friend and the inspiration behind the Detroit Black Farmer Land Fund alongside her Husband Donnie.

Roxanne's spirit was of motion and solutions, her love and knowledge of growing food lead a lot of people to the soil. Her transplanting courses on herbs and advocacy for her people has touched, taught and frankly moved the entire agriculture community in Detroit forward.

In March 2013, Roxanne was making sure everything was going smoothly at a Keep Growing Detroit Cold Crop Seed Distribution at Earthworks. As the Earthworks Asst. Farm Manager, she was checking in with all the volunteers when she met Donnie. He was setting up in the soup kitchen dining room to do a seeding demonstration during distribution. They got to talking and soon realized they were both in the Garden Resource Program, and both working on gardens in parks. Roxanne started one up while she was in Urban Roots, and Donnie got his going as a Grown in Detroit grower. She wanted to help him out in his garden, and even organized a volunteer group to get it going. They kept connecting and getting to know each other in similar circles. By August 2014 they were married, and eventually homesteading with their three kids on the east side of the city.

Donnie and Roxanne are the founders of Occupy Yourselves Agricultural Academy. Occupy Yourselves is dedicated to the sustainable stabilization of their neighborhood, known as Mapleridge, Precinct 9, in the city of Detroit. Over the years they directly witnessed a reduction of dumping in the area where they gardened and acquired more land for productive use to deter blight. Roxanne herself was a graduate of Earthworks Agricultural Training Program (2010), Urban Roots, and an MSU Extension Master Gardener. Roxanne and Donnie are three time awardees of the Detroit Black Farmer Land Fund and co-founders of the DBFLF Grow-Op.

We could always count on her for a smile, or a laugh, even when she didn't feel her best, happy to be seen and alive and doing what she loved. A mother, Wife and community member, Roxanne, took care of her family AND helped to push forward a movement of self-sustaining Black farmers who have the resources we need to succeed and make money doing it. She never hesitated to say what needed to be said or speak truth to power. We love you Roxanne and we hope that you can rest now, in Peace and in Power.

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This is a HOMEGOING Fundraiser to support and cover the Cost of funeral Services and a Family Care Fund for her Husband and three children as they grieve, survive and lay their Mother, Wife and friend to rest.

We ask the communities of Detroit Black Farmer Land Fund, Oakland Avenue Urban Farm, Keep Growing Detroit, DTown and DBCFSN, City Commons, Earthworks, Detroiters and Families across the city/state/country/world to show up for Roxanne and our family here in Detroit, to exercise what it means to be in community together as we Process this great Loss.

We speak your name Roxanne as a spiritual warrior here on earth and an Ancestor who now walks with us in this life. As Farmers we will Love the Earth, Continue to Occupy and steward this Land; For the Children, ourselves and for you Roxanne, now our beloved ancestor. One of many ancestral agricultural warriors of Detroit, we deeply honor all of your contributions to our community and to the Earth and wish you a safe trip home.

Ase’

Northend Christian CDC/Oakland Avenue Urban Farm is one of the three collaborating organizations with Detroit Black Farmer Land Fund. They will collect the funds and distribute them directly to family.