Between two brick walls were 6 mini raised garden beds calling for attention!!
The principal gave me approval to do what was necessary to make it look better. This was probably the first big mission that I was so scared to do. Immediately I started writing grant letters to all the local greenhouse companies, Lowes, NC Farm Bureau, and Home depot. Surprisingly, the Majority of them donated all together $500 worth of materials. Lowes donated all the wood to help build trellises and raise our garden beds higher. Home Depot donated supplies and soil. Local greenhouse companies such as Garden Greenhouse, Goodman Farm Supply, Yard Stuff Bark & Stone, and Godley’s Garden Center & Nursery donated a massive amount of soils, tools, and plants. A lumber company named Cozart’s built us a picnic table since our kids had nowhere to eat their snacks.
NC Farm Bureau donated monies to my garden club.
The community contribution was all by the grace of God in their hearts to help out. As the Lord said “ Seek and ye shall find” Matthew 7:7. The Custodians at the school helped me out so much by using the supplies to raise the garden beds higher because that was not a skill I had.
I knew I needed more help learning how to garden and teach it to the students, so I reached out to Alan Goodman that owns “Goodman Farm Supply”. I asked him could he be my mentor in gardening? Mr.Goodman told me to write him a 1-2 page paper expressing why he should be my mentor and to turn it in the morning at his shop. I told him I can write that letter and it will be there in the morning. I went home and wrote on paper how important it would be if he was my mentor and how much it would mean to me. I woke up super early to go crosstown to drop the paper off at his shop.I called him later that day to see if he got my letter and Mr.Goodman was quite impressed that I wrote the letter. I mention to him how important it was to me, and I am a complete novice. Mr.Goodman told me how strong of a Christian he is and how God is so wonderful. I couldn’t agree with him anymore because I know that God put us together to work as a team. Mr.Goodman told me all the wood supplies I needed to get from Lowes to build the trellises so that we could start working. I would leave work and go straight to his store. We built the trellises that whole week. Once we got done with our project he dropped them off at my job, and my husband helped me put them together.
We were able to plant and harvest on all six beds, and the kids loved it!!!!
They loved gardening so much they wanted to do it the next school year. Even the parents were excited as much as their kids were. Having a garden between two brick walls is not so bad. It matters where you want to start gardening to go ahead and start doing something about it. Looking for help is t important way to help with a startup because I was not afraid to ask for help. I was more scared of doing it all by myself. The local donors are so willing to help the kids as much as possible as long as you are committed to doing it. The commitment was my answer. Finding kids to join was not a problem at all because who doesn’t love playing in the soil with bugs and eating what you’ve planted out the ground. I’m proud to say that our garden between 2 brick walls has been doing great, and the kids and I were able to see growth in our plants and ourselves.