3 Big Ways This $125K Grant Is Making an Impact
Here at Garden Joy, we absolutely love our volunteers. Without you, we wouldn’t be where we are today. And because of you and your handwork, we can happily say that we have received a grant of $129,000 from the California Department of Food and Agriculture!
Make it stand out
The question is, “How will this grant affect our community?” In short, with this new grant, your volunteering time is going to have even more of an impact on our local community and education efforts.
Here’s how:
#1. We’ve Hired Two Staff Members: At first, this may not sound like a big deal, but in reality, this is HUGE news because up to this point, we’ve been run only by volunteers. With this grant, we’re able to hire a farm manager and an education director for our team. Now, there will be someone at the garden most days of the week, maximizing your fruit and vegetable yields and teaching our local children even more about agriculture and earth science. Huge steps.
#2. We’re Expanding and Improving Our Programming: We’re also building up a field trip program, serving many more students from all around the area. This field trip program will be made up of interactive field trips that will include time for the students helping in the garden, working on starting seeds, transplanting plants, planting starts, harvesting and more. Stay tuned for more information in coming months.
#3. We’re Furthering Our Local Impact: With this new grant, we’re going to be able to donate even more to FIGS (The Food Initiative of Greater Stanislaus) , as well as, the Ray of Hope Children’s Crisis Center in San Joaquin County . By donating more to local organizations, we’re making your volunteer time have even more of an impact on a local level, directly affecting our community. Teaching the next generation about healthy eating and community service is super important to us and with your volunteer time, we will be able to help even more children. We’re always open to anyone who wants to come and join us. If you have any good experiences with Garden Joy that you’d like to share, please let us know, either in the comments below, or by contacting us directly so we can share your story.
