Hello Folks,

She simply didn’t believe me. There was no way that there could be carrots growing in her school garden because all she could see was a bunch of green leaves. But this little kindergartener from Veterans School had the surprise of her life when she reached down, scraped at the soil surface and found some orange! In the next moment she was yanking a carrot out of the ground along with her classmates and holding it up in the air with the biggest smile.

Please join us this year by donating to our end-of-year campaign in conjunction with Giving Tuesday, which is TODAY!

Why Backyard Growers this season? School, community, and backyard gardens yield delicious veggies, increase access to nature, provide learning opportunities, and improve children’s health — But more than that, gardens grow community and a powerful source of self-reliance.

This Giving Tuesday, help Backyard Growers strengthen our work serving Gloucester’s families and children. When you give today the first $2,250 we receive will be matched by three of our generous donors. This match represents a year’s worth of garden supplies for our district-wide Salad Days and Fall Harvest Days programs in Gloucester’s elementary schools. Double your impact and help us meet our match! Our partner, The Giving Common, will cover credit card fees so that 100% of your donation goes to Backyard Growers.

Please click here to make your donation.

Thank you!

Lara

 

        

This fall, partners across Gloucester collaborated in a successful push for local food in schools to celebrate Food Day and National Farm to School month. A FoodCorps Massachusetts service member at community nonprofit Backyard Growers brokered a partnership between the Gloucester school food service program and the new West Gloucester Orchard to bring over 2,000 local apples into Gloucester school cafeterias. Backyard Growers’ FoodCorps service member also set up 4 Apple Crunch events at schools to celebrate healthy food, local farms, and local farmers. Click here to read more on the Backyard Growers website!

 

It’s starting to get chilly. The flannels are coming out as the men grow their beards. That means one thing- it’s time to clean up some garden beds! Join Backyard Growers in one of our many available volunteer clean up days and give back to Gloucester!

Sign up for the McPherson Park Clean Up (10AM-12PM or 1-3PM on November 11) here or sign up for the School Garden Clean Up (10AM-12PM or 1-3PM on November 3 or 3-5PM on November 4 or 18) here.

Thank you for your service and happy gardening!