St. Mark’s, Mountain View Elementary Team Up to Feed the Hungry

food bank school garden
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By Eric Wilson-Edge

hometown logoThe classroom can be anywhere. Today it’s a field behind St. Mark Lutheran Church in Lacey. A dozen or so third graders listen patiently to Gail Frare. She’s dressed in jeans, t-shirt and mud boots. It’s a pleasant morning, some clouds, no rain and warm.

Frare asks the kids to carefully pick up their cabbage starts. The mix of boys and girls are noticeably excited. Each examines the delicate structure of their plant. The synapses are firing, questions are forming.

food bank school gardenMichaela Winkley welcomes me. Winkley has a quiet voice that fails to hide her enthusiasm. She snaps a few pictures from the camera dangling around her neck. Winkley is the School Garden Program Manager for the Thurston County Food Bank.

All of the food in this garden, all of the peas, carrots, kale, potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, onions, beets and berries will go to the food bank. Much all of this food will be planted by the students at Mountain View Elementary.

Across from the field another group of students are getting a lesson about cabbage from Pastor Beth Utto-Galarneau, who is holding a cabbage plant. The cabbage is red and wearing glasses. The kids laugh. They’re interested, several raise their hand during the course of the talk.

food bank school garden“A lot of the kids have never seen vegetables grow,” says Utto-Galarneau. One goal of the program is to give kids hands-on experience growing food. Each grade planted a specific vegetable. “We’ve told the kids to come back with their parents this summer to see how their vegetables are doing,” says Utto-Galarneau.

St. Mark’s has been using their garden to help the food bank since 2010. In the last four years more than 10,000 pounds of food has been donated. The Washington State Department of Ecology, Kiwanis and Komachin Middle School have similar programs.

There are shouts of “worm” and “spider” from the field. Frare embraces their excitement. She calmly explains why spiders are good for the garden and shouldn’t be squashed.  “We are trying to look for opportunities to strengthen the ties to the school,” says Frare.

St. Mark’s is located right across the street from Mountain View.  Students, parents and faculty are excited about the partnership between the school and the church. “Church members have stepped forward to help individual families, our homeless population, volunteer for the before school program for students and have graciously given our school monetary support,” says Michele Zodrow.  Zodrow is the Intervention Specialist at Mountain View.

Nutrition is another key component of the project. Winkley went to each classroom promoting the benefits of eating healthy and of trying new foods. She challenges the kids to “give their taste buds a chance.”

food bank school gardenThe two groups switch. The kids exchange information in audible glee as they pass each other.  Some show their friends the romaine lettuce or tomatoes they just learned to identify. Winkley brings out napkins, broccoli and hummus.  This is both snack and adventure.

A few students express their reservations about the mysterious goop. Some are quite honest about their relationship with broccoli. In the end it looks like everyone tries a bite.

I ask Pastor Beth if the kids like coming to the garden. She smiles and does a very convincing imitation.  “One of the little boys was asking all kinds of questions and at the end he said ‘I just love this place.’ Another little boy told me this was the best day of his life.”

Photos courtesy Thurston County Food Bank

 

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