Growing Together: Open Forum

Hi! One of the goals of this year's Kids Garden Month celebration is to help everyone get to know each other here in the Kids Garden Community. 

 

Tell us a little bit about yourself in a reply to this post and let's build some new connections!

 

Note: This is part of the Kids Garden Month Challenge and everyone who responds will be entered to win prizes! 

 

All of the details about Kids Garden Month, the different challenges you can participate in, and the prizes (including a garden bed from Vita!) are on this page. 

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Amelia Dupuis
Kids Garden Community Manager
KidsGardening
she/her
------------------------------

Hi!  I have a high school life skills teacher in a separate public day. We started a small box garden with items that were donated (wood was donated by my sister for a birthday present) 5 years ago. We have a small garden at the school and hope to continue to add to it. This years addition was a green house that we are working on installing. We grow many plants and vegetables in the classroom.

I also have a community garden that I am part of at our local park district that was started 3 years ago. Since then, a master garden has begun to help and I have a local daycare bring the kids to pick vegetables and learn. 

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katie zaborac
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HI Katie!  In what area of the world do you garden?  Master gardeners are a wealth of knowledge and great source of help.  For us school teachers who run the garden programs at our school, the garden can become overwhelming without some help.  What is your students' favorite crop grown so far?

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JACQUELINE LACEY
Kimbark Elementary School
San Bernardino CA
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-01-2025 11:27:13 AM
From: katie zaborac
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi!  I have a high school life skills teacher in a separate public day. We started a small box garden with items that were donated (wood was donated by my sister for a birthday present) 5 years ago. We have a small garden at the school and hope to continue to add to it. This years addition was a green house that we are working on installing. We grow many plants and vegetables in the classroom.

I also have a community garden that I am part of at our local park district that was started 3 years ago. Since then, a master garden has begun to help and I have a local daycare bring the kids to pick vegetables and learn. 

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katie zaborac
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Hi. I am a children's librarian in a public library. We have garden beds outside the library where I do programs with K-6 children each spring & summer. In the past I have focused on vegetables, but this year I hope to grow a lot of pollinators both in the garden beds and in other areas around the library.

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Karen Stuppi
Children's Librarian
New Brunswick Free Public Library
60 Livingston Avenue
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
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Hi Karen!

I'm in Southern California, and while students like the veggie garden and eating the things they grow, they absolutely love the pollinator garden!  We have had monarchs lay eggs for the past 3 years and students are in awe of the life cycle and metamorphosis of the butterflies.  Not to mention the other critters that spend time in the garden.  Good luck and enjoy!

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JACQUELINE LACEY
Kimbark Elementary School
San Bernardino CA
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-01-2025 12:55:45 PM
From: Karen Stuppi
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi. I am a children's librarian in a public library. We have garden beds outside the library where I do programs with K-6 children each spring & summer. In the past I have focused on vegetables, but this year I hope to grow a lot of pollinators both in the garden beds and in other areas around the library.

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Karen Stuppi
Children's Librarian
New Brunswick Free Public Library
60 Livingston Avenue
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
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Hi! My name is Kendall Slaughter and I am the Farm to School Coordinator for Springfield, Mo Public Schools. We are the largest district in the state of Missouri. I serve 27 in-ground gardens, 57 aeroponic Tower Gardens, 4 heated greenhouses (increasing by 2 this year), 5 unheated high tunnels (increasing by 2 this year) in southwest Missouri. Our Farm to School program has a presence at over 60% of our schools in the district. I have been working with SPS for 5 years and our program is entirely funded by a grant from a private foundation. 

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Kendall Slaughter
Farm to School Specialist
Springfield Public Schools
Springfield, Mo
keslaughter@spsmail.org
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Hi Kendall!

I am amazed at what is going on in your district!  It is great to know what public schools in other states (I'm in CA) are taking gardening seriously.  Funding is a huge issue for most garden educators and grants seem to be the best option.  Do teachers in your schools help with gardening, or is that solely on you?  Thanks for sharing your story and your amazing work!

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JACQUELINE LACEY
Kimbark Elementary School
San Bernardino CA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 04-01-2025 01:49:16 PM
From: Kendall Slaughter
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi! My name is Kendall Slaughter and I am the Farm to School Coordinator for Springfield, Mo Public Schools. We are the largest district in the state of Missouri. I serve 27 in-ground gardens, 57 aeroponic Tower Gardens, 4 heated greenhouses (increasing by 2 this year), 5 unheated high tunnels (increasing by 2 this year) in southwest Missouri. Our Farm to School program has a presence at over 60% of our schools in the district. I have been working with SPS for 5 years and our program is entirely funded by a grant from a private foundation. 

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Kendall Slaughter
Farm to School Specialist
Springfield Public Schools
Springfield, Mo
keslaughter@spsmail.org
------------------------------

Hey Jacqueline, Funding is a giant issue for sure. I'm glad we are funded by a private grant as the district cut $9m from the budget last year. My position would definitely have been eliminated if the district was paying my salary. I'm also glad it's a private grant and not a USDA grant right now.... I feel horrible for those losing that vital funding. The teachers to most of the work in the gardens with their students. I mostly provide support to the teachers and students using the gardens. I host taste tests, field trips, garden work days and times, classroom seed starting and many other similar activities. 

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Kendall Slaughter
Farm to School Specialist
Springfield Public Schools
Springfield, Mo
keslaughter@spsmail.org
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 04-01-2025 02:04:58 PM
From: JACQUELINE LACEY
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi Kendall!

I am amazed at what is going on in your district!  It is great to know what public schools in other states (I'm in CA) are taking gardening seriously.  Funding is a huge issue for most garden educators and grants seem to be the best option.  Do teachers in your schools help with gardening, or is that solely on you?  Thanks for sharing your story and your amazing work!

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JACQUELINE LACEY
Kimbark Elementary School
San Bernardino CA
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 04-01-2025 01:49:16 PM
From: Kendall Slaughter
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi! My name is Kendall Slaughter and I am the Farm to School Coordinator for Springfield, Mo Public Schools. We are the largest district in the state of Missouri. I serve 27 in-ground gardens, 57 aeroponic Tower Gardens, 4 heated greenhouses (increasing by 2 this year), 5 unheated high tunnels (increasing by 2 this year) in southwest Missouri. Our Farm to School program has a presence at over 60% of our schools in the district. I have been working with SPS for 5 years and our program is entirely funded by a grant from a private foundation. 

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Kendall Slaughter
Farm to School Specialist
Springfield Public Schools
Springfield, Mo
keslaughter@spsmail.org

It sounds like you have a pretty great system in place.  I love that the teachers are willing to take students out to the garden without your presence.  There are so many lessons that can be taught in the garden and students love being outside to learn.  

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JACQUELINE LACEY
Kimbark Elementary School
San Bernardino CA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 04-01-2025 02:12:29 PM
From: Kendall Slaughter
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hey Jacqueline, Funding is a giant issue for sure. I'm glad we are funded by a private grant as the district cut $9m from the budget last year. My position would definitely have been eliminated if the district was paying my salary. I'm also glad it's a private grant and not a USDA grant right now.... I feel horrible for those losing that vital funding. The teachers to most of the work in the gardens with their students. I mostly provide support to the teachers and students using the gardens. I host taste tests, field trips, garden work days and times, classroom seed starting and many other similar activities. 

------------------------------
Kendall Slaughter
Farm to School Specialist
Springfield Public Schools
Springfield, Mo
keslaughter@spsmail.org
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 04-01-2025 02:04:58 PM
From: JACQUELINE LACEY
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi Kendall!

I am amazed at what is going on in your district!  It is great to know what public schools in other states (I'm in CA) are taking gardening seriously.  Funding is a huge issue for most garden educators and grants seem to be the best option.  Do teachers in your schools help with gardening, or is that solely on you?  Thanks for sharing your story and your amazing work!

------------------------------
JACQUELINE LACEY
Kimbark Elementary School
San Bernardino CA


Original Message:
Sent: 04-01-2025 01:49:16 PM
From: Kendall Slaughter
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi! My name is Kendall Slaughter and I am the Farm to School Coordinator for Springfield, Mo Public Schools. We are the largest district in the state of Missouri. I serve 27 in-ground gardens, 57 aeroponic Tower Gardens, 4 heated greenhouses (increasing by 2 this year), 5 unheated high tunnels (increasing by 2 this year) in southwest Missouri. Our Farm to School program has a presence at over 60% of our schools in the district. I have been working with SPS for 5 years and our program is entirely funded by a grant from a private foundation. 

------------------------------
Kendall Slaughter
Farm to School Specialist
Springfield Public Schools
Springfield, Mo
keslaughter@spsmail.org

Hello, I'm Natalia! I want to start Sharing my love/knowledge of Gardening with My 2 yr old son whome has Trisomy 21 (Down syndrome) some might think 2 is a little younger HOWEVER Early Education/learning is Key for individuals whome have Down Syndrome! Im so Excited to Teach my son How to Grow his own Healthy food ! Thank you for Haveing me !

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Natalia Spicer
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Hi! My name is Kalie Johnson and I am an informal garden educator to youth in foster care and residential treatment facilities in Northeast Ohio! My work is opening up to be not just seasonal, but year-round next! I wanted to share my introduction in your chat too! Nice to meet you

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Kalie J
Fostering Hope Ohio
OH
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I am an Elementary School Counselor in Massachusetts working in new building.  The builders included 8 raised bed gardens.  We have added a blackberry patch, inoculated oak logs with shiitake mushroom spawn to create a mushroom garden and added Asian pear, peach and persimmon trees.  Our students are able to participate in gardening lessons through our STEAM classes. 

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Lisa A Ottaviano
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Hello! I am a 6th and 7th grade science teacher who is starting a school garden. I love to teach students about plants and vegetables. Our long term goal is to have a school garden that our students are able to get veggies during all times of the year (community) and also use the food we grow in our school lunches. 

Last year we grew tomatoes, green beans, and squash. Our challenge is we need to put a fence up because the deer eat faster than we can pick (in a rural district). I want to share the area, but I also want to fence in the area we have to save our veggies. 

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Bridget Roderick
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Hello! 

I am located in northern MA and have a few garden spanes that  I over see at my work!  I am the Resident Service Coordinator for 3 different housing Authorities and this is my second year overseeing the gardens! 

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Coreen Howland
Ipswich Housing Authority
Ipswich MA
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Hello! I am an Arizona native and just starting to garden. I am also a public school teacher trying to create opportunities for my students to learn more about growing plants, the role they play in our environment and how to care for a garden. I am excited and looking forward to connecting and learning from each other!

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RyLee Williams
Gilbert, AZ
Public School
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Hi! I am a Nutrition Educator in SNAP-Ed, working with youth to start gardens at their apartments(low-income housing).

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Macey Crist
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Hi, My name is Christy Galloway. I am an NC Pre-K teacher. We have 4 and 5-year-olds getting ready to go to Kindergarten. I have been in education in one shape or another, from daycare to director to sub - to headstart here. I love this age and all the Aha moments. We have a wonderful time. I have two grown daughters and two grandsons. I have 2 dogs, a cat, and a tortoise. I love teaching hands-on and getting dirty. 

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Christy Galloway
Northside Learning Center
Lenoir NC
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Hello, I am a Children's Librarian at a Public Library.  We have an outdoor Garden space in our Youth Services Courtyard area.  I am really good at starting gardens with my kids, but struggle with getting them to growing beyond the leaf stage. However, that does not stop me from planting every Spring and Fall in hopes that I will improve my gardening skills.

Jenni Gordon

Librarian

Peoria Public Library – Main Branch

Peoria, Arizona

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Jenni Gordon
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Hello!   I am Christine,the director of McGregor Presbyterian Preschool with a BS degree in Early Childhood since 1989! Last year my preschool created our first outdoor classroom with lots of opportunities to learn through play in this space. We raise fruits, veggies, and butterflies (painted ladies and monarchs) while learning about how differently things grow and how they are used to better our world; nutrition (fruits/veggies), clothing (cotton and dyes) or household products (luffas).  In our classroom we also learn and report the weather, collect rain to water and just play! 

I will share pictures when I get them on this computer :) 

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Christine Manley
McGregor Presbyterian Preschool
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Hi! I have 6 garden beds that I manage with second graders and a club (12 second and third graders) in North Carolina. While not completely new to gardening, I still feel like a novice/beginner. This is my second spring of managing the beds.  Glad to be here! 

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Abigayil Lowe
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Hi!  I am grandmother to young ones (ages 4 and 9).  I love to garden and typically grow cucumbers, peppers, snap peas, strawberries, raspberries, herbs, tomatoes, lettuce on my deck.  My grandkids love to come over and help pick and eat the bounty.  My sister and brother-in-law are farmers and they cultivate about 5 acres of flowers and vegetables.  They do vermicomposting and have bees.  Unfortunately, we live almost 600 miles apart.

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Janice Ford
None
Canton MI
(She/Her)
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Hi, I'm a Kindergarten teacher and garden club sponsor for a K-5 elementary school.  We have a club that meets once a month throughout the school year. We have a small garden where we grow different produce that we donate to our local food banks produce stand.

-Heidi Zaebst

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Heidi Zaebst
Milford School
MILFORD IN
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I am a Landscape Horticulturist in Midland, Michigan.  I work at a botanic garden and recently took responsibility for our Children's Garden.  This is very much new territory for me and I am looking forward to finding wisdom in the posts.  My biggest challenge is figuring out how to create learning/lessons from the veggies that I grow each year.  I try to theme each year for interest.  Thanks in advance for any information that is shared. 

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Audra Hynes
Dow Gardens
Midland MI
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Hey Everyone! 

My name is Ariel and I manage school field trips and summer camps at Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison, WI. I'm so excited it is starting to feel like spring here and I can't wait to get planting, teaching, and learning alongside so many amazing kids that come to our gardens. 

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Ariel Christian
School & Out-of-School Program Specialist
Olbrich Botanical Gardens
Madison, WI
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Hi, my name is Lisa Wiggins.  I am the librarian for NSU Elementary Lab School located in Natchitoches Parish.  Our students range from K-5th grade.  I started a row garden about 17 years ago to enrich the library curriculum and now has become the foundation for all that I do.  Not an experienced gardener but learn along with the students.  Currently, we have 14 raised beds with a covered pavilion, tool shed, and it is our favorite place for class.  Always eager to learn and incorporate garden related activities.  Happy to share our story and suggestions if needed.   Fun Fact is that we love to plant popcorn!

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lisa wiggins
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Hi all! I work as an Environmental Education Specialist for Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center in National City, CA! Our non-profit is partnered with the elementary school district in National City and we maintain all ten school gardens at each of the school sites. Along with maintenance of the gardens, another educator and I conduct lessons throughout the entire school year for every grade TK-6th in their gardens! We created lessons tailored to each grade level on topics of garden science, nutrition, and environmental science and focus our lessons on hands on activities and engagement with the actual plants in the garden! Students have been enjoying harvesting radishes, carrots, and snap peas lately!

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Maya Markillie
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Hello everyone! I'm Dí Plant Lady, a passionate microfarmer and homeschool parent. I love cultivating not just plants, but also a love for nature and learning in my children. Gardening is a big part of our family life, and I enjoy integrating it into our homeschool curriculum. As a community leader, I'm excited to connect with fellow garden enthusiasts and share ideas, tips, and inspiration. Let's grow together!

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Tangia Taylor
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Hi there! I'm a second grade teacher from Virginia Beach, Virginia. I help lead our school's garden club for 4th and 5th graders. While I'm still pretty new to gardening myself, I wanted to help students learn about sustainability and experience the joy of growing things. Thanks to the many helpful ideas shared on this platform, our weekly meetings have become more engaging and purposeful. Our garden has a lot of potential, and as we learn more about what thrives in our area, we plan to expand. My hope is that one day, we'll be able to contribute our harvest to the school lunchroom.

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Shannon Manning
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Hi, I teach pre k in rural Maine! I have recently taken over the task of revitalizing our elementary school garden. We are turning it into a sensory/pollinator garden. The biggest challenge is funding - we're working on a shoestring budget and rely on donations to keep our garden thriving. Last year we were awarded a grants from KidsGardening.org, which was a huge boost to the program!

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Beth Burnett
MSAD55
Hiram ME
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Hi, I am a preschool teacher in Springfield, Ohio. This is the start of my favorite time of year for teaching. We get into life cycles and new growth of everything. We are getting ready to clean out our raised beds to get planting started.  Our caterpillars, ladybugs and chicken eggs should be here soon.  We also participate in a community garden that is close to the school. We will walk there once a week to tend to the garden and then families are encouraged to continue to participate throughout the summer.

Michelle

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Michelle Ekey
Miami Valley Child Development Centers
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Hi!  I live in the Mississippi Delta and work for the Soil and Water Conservation District.  One of my most fun tasks is to create educational programs for the students in Leflore County.  I am currently restarting a school garden in a local elementary school.  We will start with raised bed vegetable gardening and work up to an entire outdoor classroom and connection garden with flowers.  

If anyone is interested in programs that are designed by me and other district employees across the state please let me know.

We have a Fear Factor Box  game that teaches about microbes in the soil and a Millionaire Conservationist game (a cross between Jeopardy and Who want to be a millionaire) that you can customize the computer program to have questions about whatever subject you teach.  

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Rebecca Wammack
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Hello all!

I'm a Branch Librarian in middle TN. Our library branch is one of the first "shelf-less" in the country, focusing on bridging the digital divide, computer access, meeting spaces, and STEM programming. We've had a lot of leeway - video gaming of all kinds right next to our makerspace. A seed library sprang out of a container garden, which is now a Straw Bale garden. We try to push the line and have certainly adopted the Arts, so offer STEAM programming. It has been interesting!

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Kathleen Tyree
Rutherford County Library System/TEC
Murfreesboro TN
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Hi! I am a high school Botany teacher, and advisor of Environmental and Bee Club at my school.  I started a garden about 6 years ago, and now we have 7 beds for a companion garden, and a pollinator garden.  I am having Americorps come to work with my students to start up the garden again, and to put in a better walkway.

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Renee Fudala
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Hi Amy my name is Bola Adeshina. I am a Nigerian- American Nutritionist, Nurse, Wellness Coach and Athletic Trainer. I created The Peace Workout and educate on communities with food Apartheid/Desert. I educate youth on building community gardens to planting and preparing different foods through a cultural perspective. I am a Junior Master Gardening facilitator and a Pasco County MGV. I educate on two fundamentals which affect our mental health physical activity and nutrition. I am also a mother of two. A graduate son in IT from FIU and a sophomore in high school daughter.

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Bola Adeshina
The Peace Workout Corp
Tampa FL
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Hello Everyone!

I work for a public K-12 Charter School as a Grant Writer and Development Specialist, and also manage our non-profit Foundation as the Secretary and Treasurer. One of my goals for this and next school-year is to get our students gardening! A project that will be taking place come August includes hydroponics for our Culinary Arts Students and Special Education Students. 

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Adrina Hernandez
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Hi.  I am a school resource officer for a school in  St. Louis County, MO.  I started a Gardening Club for kids in the 2nd through 6th grades after school.  We are having so much fun.  So far, we have planted some seeds, made seed balls, painted bird houses for the garden, and made bug hotels.  I am happy I started this club.

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Erica Stough
Maryland Heights Police Department
Maryland Heights MO
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Hi! My name is Stephanie and I am a first grade teacher at a STEAM school in Hoschton, Ga. Over the past two years I've become more involved in our school garden which serves as our first grade PBL. My focus is using the garden to build a foundation in agriculture literacy. I've written grants to fund most of my garden projects including our most recent endeavor, a pizza garden. We also have raised beds, containers, a farm tower, and a greenhouse, as well as a vermicomposter. I look forward to being a part of this community and learning from all of you! 

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Stephanie Westhafer
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Hello! I'm the director of an early childhood center serving around 20 2-4year olds. We put in a container garden last year and love to see our garden growing. We have used it mostly to get the kids to try new foods and supplement our food program. I love this community and all the great things I have learned here.

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Sarah Baugh
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Hi! I'm Hannah, director at Mountain Sprouts Children's Community in Leavenworth, WA. We are a nature-based early learning program nestled in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. The level of gardening has changed over the years and is largely dependent on teacher participation/investment which makes it tough to have a cohesive program. Gardening is just one aspect of our program, not the main focus. However, each of our three classes does participate in some capacity even if it's as simple as sprouting seeds in early Spring or visiting the on-site organic farm throughout the growing season that we do not manage. 

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Hannah Pick
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Hi! My name is Claudia. I'm the Lower School STEAM coordinator and teacher at a very small private school in the northeast. We have gardens all around campus. My favorite is the Children's Garden, a place where our students learn about, grow, and harvest vegetables for a local food bank. We also have a small orchard of fruit trees, a new greenhouse, and Milkweed and Pollinator gardens to attract monarchs. and other pollinators. I teach our 1st graders about Monarchs and pollinators in the fall. We collaborate with a program called "Symbolic Migration" and Journey North. I love my job!

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Claudia Esposito
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Hello!  Nice to meet you!  I am Jill Altomare and I teach art and coordinate our school gardens.  We currently have a butterfly garden, hydroponic system, food garden, and food forest.  We call our special space our gARTen.

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Jill Altomare
Park Maitland South
Winter Park FL
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Hello! I'm a third grade teacher in rural Idaho. My hope is to one day add a pollinators garden with native plants to our area as well as a raised bed garden so that what is harvested can then be eaten for schoolwide snacks and lunches. It has been hard finding grants and sponsorships for this goal, however, but I will keep looking ahead!

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Felicity Steers
New Plymouth Elementary School
New Plymouth ID
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Hi everyone! I am a backyard vegetable gardener that decided to move from Maryland to Puerto Rico. So I am relearning how to garden in a tropical climate. I want to start a community garden with other homeschool families where I live and hope to get inspiration from this community. Thanks! Elisabeth:)

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Elisabeth Forde
Reading Garden Club
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Hi!

I am also a gardener who is new to Puerto Rico and tropical gardening! I work with university students at a community garden and would like to learn ways to better engage them and get them excited about nature. I would also like to get involved with gardening at my preschooler’s school in the future.

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Gretchen Garcia
San Juan PR
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-29-2025 03:39:32 PM
From: Elisabeth Forde
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi everyone! I am a backyard vegetable gardener that decided to move from Maryland to Puerto Rico. So I am relearning how to garden in a tropical climate. I want to start a community garden with other homeschool families where I live and hope to get inspiration from this community. Thanks! Elisabeth:)

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Elisabeth Forde
Reading Garden Club
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Hi, I'm Jen. I've switched grades a bit but currently I teach kindergarten. I just started at my new school, but would love to start growing more indoor plants to purify the air and grow in some containers. I moved here from Colorado where I had a huge garden with native flowers, vegetables, pumpkins, and fruit trees. I also had 6 hens. However, I've struggled with plants since living in Hawaii and want to learn more to share with my class.

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Jennifer Ingellis
Voyager
Honolulu HI
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Hello!!! I can relate! Can we maybe start a tropical garden group? Does this thread already exists? I feel like I am starting over and need to relearn how to garden from a temperate climate to tropical. 

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Elisabeth Forde
Reading Garden Club
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-29-2025 11:36:48 PM
From: Jennifer Ingellis-Dupre
Subject: Introduce Yourself – Kids Garden Month Challenge #1

Hi, I'm Jen. I've switched grades a bit but currently I teach kindergarten. I just started at my new school, but would love to start growing more indoor plants to purify the air and grow in some containers. I moved here from Colorado where I had a huge garden with native flowers, vegetables, pumpkins, and fruit trees. I also had 6 hens. However, I've struggled with plants since living in Hawaii and want to learn more to share with my class.

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Jennifer Ingellis
Voyager
Honolulu HI
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Hello All! I am a Business and Community Educator. I have a non profit that teaches kids about gardening and agriculture. I grew up on a farm and want to share all of my knowledge and passion for the industries with our future. I am also on the Board of Directors for our community garden as well as have a thriving backyard garden. So as I commonly say, Come Grow with ME!

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Laketra Calloway
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Hi, I'm a Montessori teacher who blends academic learning with hands-on experiences, especially in the garden. In my classroom, I focus on nurturing independence, curiosity, and a love of learning through meaningful work. Our garden is an extension of that space-students help plant, water, and care for flowers and vegetables, and we use what we grow as part of our lessons. Whether we're reading outside among the blooms or observing pollinators in action, I love creating opportunities for my students to connect with nature and each other.

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Anna Russo
Milwaukee WI
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