Something very special is growing across the United States. Katie’s Krops gardens are springing up everywhere. 49 gardens to be exact. How do these gardens grow? Numerous gardens are in my community, the others are grown by kids ages 9 to 16 who applied for, and won, grants from Katie’s Krops.
The grant process is simple. Kids, or a group of kids, apply for grants by answering a few simple questions: why do you want to plant a vegetable garden to feed people in need? Where will you plant your garden? Who will help them grow your garden, and where will you donate your harvest?
Why do kids around the country apply for grants from Katie’s Krops to grow change in their community? Their reasons vary. Some grantees grew up being supported by emergency food programs that offered no fresh produce. They want to provide something better for those whose families currently rely on the very same programs. There is a brother and sister team who reside in a community that was affected by a tornado. Residents in their communities lost everything and are in need of food. Their garden will supply food to the effected families. Their reasons may be uniquely theirs just like their gardens.
Grantee gardens grow in unique locations. Katie’s Krops funded gardens are growing at public libraries and in backyards. Our gardens flourish on roof tops and in raised bed planters. Empty lots are turned into gardens of dreams by kids from 9 to 16. But one common bond, one dream connects us all.
We may be young but we are growing change in our communities. Our harvest impacts our communities in amazing ways. Our South Carolina grantees are donating their harvest to the food pantry that their school needed to start because so many students were struggling with hunger and unable to concentrate in class. Their fellow classmates will donate fresh produce to stock the food pantry. Soup kitchens, food banks and families in need coast to coast benefit from our bounty.
