Celebrating Dave Smith, our Urban Farm Founder
It was Dave Smith who looked at an overflow parking lot on St. Vincent de Paul's main campus and envisioned what would become the future Rob and Melani Walton Urban Farm.
"I can't look at a vacant piece of ground without thinking: What can you grow on it?" Dave shared in a video tribute to his impact at SVdP and in the greater Maricopa County community.
Under his leadership, SVdP expanded to operate three urban farms, two in Phoenix and one in Mesa, all located next to one of the nonprofit's charity dining rooms. Thousands of pounds of fresh produce are harvested from the farms each year, feeding the most vulnerable in our community.
Dave came to SVdP in 2012 after retiring as County Manager of Maricopa County, where he not only balanced the budget but spearheaded the funding and development of the Human Services Campus, now known as Key Campus. The campus centralizes resources for people in need, especially those experiencing homelessness in the surrounding area, and has been instrumental in helping people exit homelessness.
When Dave left government, SVdP's former CEO Steve Zabilski (1996-2022) jumped at the opportunity to recruit Dave as the nonprofit's Chief Operations Officer. As a man with vision, leadership and a servant heart for those in his community, Dave fit right in with the nonprofit's mission.
It is thanks to Dave's vision and leadership that SVdP's Urban Farms program exists today. Now in his 80s, he is retiring from SVdP and leaving the Urban Farm program in the hands of his long-time mentee, Chanika "Nika" Forte. Nika began in the farm as a volunteer until Dave recruited her to lead SVdP's urban farm at Key Campus. She has served as the director of the Urban Farm program since 2023 and will continue forward the great work of growing nutritious produce for the community while offering a space of education, outreach and enrichment for those interested in urban farming.
On March 17, SVdP staff celebrated Dave's retirement from the nonprofit, bestowing him with a glass apple keepsake. In reaction to everyone's words of appreciation, Dave shared thoughts of his own:
"You come here, and it's a different environment," Dave said. "Here they say, 'God bless you. Thank you. We appreciate.' as a course of everyday activity. What that means is that the work is important, the experience is important. But it also means you will never outgrow this place, because the spirit is here, because the commitment to do the kind of work for which there is almost a limitless demand. I don't care how rich you are, or how much energy you are, or how many friends you have — you will never outgrow the work."
