St. Louis (23 Nov 2016) –The Emerson Friends and Family Youth Garden in Ferguson, MO was expanded on 5 Oct 2016 as a result of an award from Gateway Greening. Four raised beds were installed and filled with soil. The award also included 1 picnic table, 1 wooden bench, 1 toolshet, 2 handtool sets, 2 shovels, 2 hard rakes, 2 garden hoes, 2 digging forks, 1 wheelbarrow, and 1 watering hose.
The Emerson Friends & Family Youth Garden will be able to grow 100 lbs of produce annually, on average. All produce will be informally distributed throughout the local community.
“Gateway Greening has been a blessing to the Emerson Family YMCA O.G.’s (Organic Gardeners) Club. By providing us with a grant to revitalize our community garden. Gateway Greening has really set us up to have an effective garden to be a better resource for the North County Community. Gateway Greening provided support & supplies to professionalize our garden process with tools, a shed and four additional garden beds which has enhanced our ability to grow more healthy fruits & vegetables for our community and to be a resource especially for our youth by helping to educate and empower them through gardening. This partnership has been a win-win for The Emerson Family YMCA O.G.’s to produce a good healthy garden for North County!” – Phedra Nelson, Community Wellness Director, Gateway Region YMCA.
For 30 years, Gateway Greening has educated and empowered individuals to strengthen their communities through gardening and urban agriculture. Gateway Greening’s Garden Program receives many requests to start or expand community gardens in St. Louis. Projects are selected based on a number of factors including: need, the quality of the garden space, the level of community support, and the thoroughness of the plan for using the garden space. Awarded sites are typically supported with seeds/plants, garden tools, materials (hardscape and landscape), and guidance.
The Emerson Friends & Family Youth Garden is located at 3390 Pershall Rd, Ferguson, MO 63135.
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About Gateway Greening
Gateway Greening is a nonprofit organization that educates and empowers people to strengthen their communities through gardening and urban agriculture. Gateway Greening has been working to provide creative, grassroots solutions to urban problems since 1984. Programs include supporting more than 200 community and youth-focused gardens across the St. Louis area through educational opportunities, garden supplies and technical assistance; and Gateway Greening’s Urban Farm, a 2.5-acre farm in downtown St. Louis that provides therapeutic horticulture and a jobs training program. Visit Gateway Greening at www.gatewaygreening.org. @gatewaygreening.
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