Volunteers unite for community garden
Jimmy Settle
USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — Welcome sunshine and a spring-like feeling of rebirth set the tone Friday for volunteers who cleared the site and constructed raised plant beds at downtown Clarksville's community garden.
By mid-morning some 25 volunteers were at the corner of Commerce and Glenn streets, digging, clearing brush, hammering and connecting the wood frames for the plant beds and shoveling fresh dirt to fill them.
They represented all age groups and walks of life. Clarksville's regional hospital, Tennova Healthcare, was well-represented, along with The Food Initiative, Daymar, First Advantage Bank, Clarksville Academy, the United Way of the Greater Clarksville Region and the Mount Olive Cemetery Historical Preservation Society.
All were there to join in the effort to unite a community, improve it and supply nutritious, fresh-grown produce later in the year.
With the help of some creative Clarksville Academy students and the coordination of Montgomery County government, various facets of community life are joining in the effort to provide healthy, home-grown foods in a low-income area of the city.
"We have had a fantastic response to our requests for volunteers for the community garden," said local United Way Executive Director Ginna Holleman, who was among the group of local residents who rolled up their sleeves and jump-started the project Friday.
"When you look around here, you see, for example, Tennova Healthcare-Clarksville, which has about 25 employees participating, Daymar which also has about 20 involved, First Advantage Bank, and so many other organizations who are answering the call.
"This has been restarted as a partnership with the county, and the city forester has also been on site participating in providing resources for this project," Holleman said. "We are very excited ... when we first got here this morning we were looking at an empty, vacant lot, and now you can already see where brush has been cleared and the raised plant beds are appearing."
With spring drawing near, the Commerce and Glenn community garden is actually a project in rejuvenation. The Brandon Hills Community Garden project actually predates the recent collaborative effort.
Under the guidance of Geneva Bell of the Mount Olive Cemetery Historical Preservation Society, with support from Karla Kean from the Montgomery County Extension Service and the city of Clarksville's Department of Housing and Community Development, the garden has fed and educated dozens of children since 2008.
With a focus on restoring cultural heritage and developing personal life skills, the garden has become a fertile ground for change and growth in its community. Those involved over the years, including Bell, said they are excited to see what this new wave of attention and support will bring and are looking forward to getting back to work in the garden.
Kean has said this project was initiated with a three-pronged purpose: to engage the community in efforts to reclaim blighted neighborhoods by transforming neglected parcels into productive green spaces, to increase residents' vegetable consumption by providing fresh produce and to increase options for outdoor recreation and physical fitness, and positive socialization.
After many successful years, the garden project needed a jump-start, so the new leadership group has been formed to salvage the already-established work at Commerce and Glenn.
In 2012, Clarksville Academy introduced the program, Challenge-Based Learning, which takes a key topic in the community and allows CA students to collaborate and create projects and solutions that will be beneficial to themselves and the community.
For the Brandon Hill project, CBL students have been creating a design for the garden with the intent of establishing several raised garden beds because of space constrictions.
Some of the CA students at the garden Friday included Mallory Wallace, Macy Truitt, Emma Hessock and Elizabeth Mabry, who said the day was part of the fruition of a dream for the students: "Hopefully, this continues to bring the community together to learn how to garden, and grow the food that is needed for nutrition."
Responsible for gathering volunteers for the gardening work is the United Way's Volunteer Committee chairman, Mark Marsh, who is also president and chief executive officer of Tennova Healthcare-Clarksville. Tennova was well-represented by other hospital staff at the garden Friday, including Shawn Molsberger, hospital chief operating officer: "We're one of the largest employers in this community, and we love to give back to this community.
"We have close to 25 people here today, including one of our people who was up working the entire night before, before coming over here today to volunteer. We appreciate their dedication and support," Molsberger said.
Shannon Green with the Clarksville-Montgomery County Economic Development Council is the community's current United Way chairman, and he, too, grabbed a shovel and went to work Friday.
He had high praise for the people involved in the collaborative effort: "There are so many ... like the city employees who have come by and helped with cleaning the right-of-way, hauled off trash and recycled organic materials.
"This is part of our United Way 'Mission Possible', and it is so rewarding to see this community of volunteers being mobilized," Green said.
During the summer months, the CBL students will not be available, but the Food Initiative will coordinate with other volunteer groups in garden maintenance and harvesting, possibly assigning a small group of Food Initiative summer students.
The Food Initiative program led by Michael Hampton, also on hand Friday, will bring a group of about five students on Wednesday mornings throughout the summer.
"Right now, we're just getting the site cleaned up, getting the raised beds built and set up, and we've got people filling them with soil," Hampton said.
Next month, the focus turns to planting, with another volunteer day set for March 18.
A garden dedication celebration is tentatively planned for Earth Day, which is April 22.
The project is built around a year-around schedule of dates for specific phases of garden planning and activity, and the United Way is continuing to recruit volunteers.
Reach Business Editor Jimmy Settle at 931-245-0247 and on Twitter @settle_leaf.
The goal is to create a food source for the community and promote its development. Volunteers are needed.
Where: The garden is in the Brandon Hills community in downtown Clarksville, on the corner of Commerce and Glenn streets.
How to get involved: To receive more information or register go to http://volunteerclarksville .volunteerhub.com or contact United Way of the Greater Clarksville Region at (931) 647-4291.