The Problem
Our beautiful elementary school is a Title I campus serving an underprivileged community in an area filled with highways and buildings and few green spaces. Our students are also suffering from a lack of access to fresh food and some even homelessness. For this reason, a group of parents came together and unpaved an acre of blacktop and built a school garden which has become a neighborhood gem. However, our struggle right now is getting enough funds to continue with our programming and maintenance of the garden. We want to ensure our space is vibrant, safe, and productive for students and families.
Our Plan
We are in the process of revitalizing the garden to reopen it for the community. Our programming is extensive, we hold garden and cooking classes for the elementary school population, we have a cafeteria-to-compost program and we also host community garden events and workshops for families and staff. Currently, we need to equip ourselves with some more tools to successfully continue our programming. Some of the things we could purchase with this grant are: 1. Aprons and gloves will keep the students clean while also eliminating barriers for them to participate in gardening activities. Materials for dream catchers will give students a fun activity to engage in and will beautify the garden. 2. A soil test kit will help us to evaluate the health of our gardens and keep them healthy throughout the year. 3. Burlap and weed cloth will help us maintain the garden and cover our composting piles so the students can enjoy the garden for years to come. With these materials, you will help us achieve our goals of building a healthy and safe garden for our students and our community.