My story- the story of a young girl and her dream to end hunger- began on an average third grade school day. Little did I know that on that day I would be given a gift, a gift that would change my life and inspire my dream. That gift was a tiny cabbage seedling from the Bonnie Plants Third Grade Cabbage Program in which third-graders from all across the country received little cabbage seedlings just like mine. We were instructed to take the seedling home, plant it, and care for it. I did just that. I found a home for the three tiny green leaves nestled in a peat pot in a sunny spot in my backyard. From the start, I knew my cabbage was special, and I was right—those tiny green leaves grew into an amazing 40-pound cabbage!
What I was inspired to do with my cabbage formed a life changing dream. My dad explained how lucky we were to sit down to a healthy meal every night because there are many people who do not have enough to eat. That lesson made the decision of what to do with my cabbage very easy. I decided to donate my giant cabbage to a soup kitchen. That was the start of an amazing journey.
It was a warm, sunny morning in May when I followed my family outside to harvest my cabbage. Following my dad, carrying his saw, and mom with the wheelbarrow in tow ready to remove the enormous veggie from its home. After the giant cabbage was removed from the ground, we lifted it into my dad’s truck ready for the ride to Tri County Family Ministries, a soup kitchen in North Charleston, South Carolina.
When we arrived, we were greeted by hugs from Ms. Sue, the director of Tri County. She was really excited by my cabbage, and the excitement grew as she called in the volunteers to see what I’d grown. I was invited to come back to serve my cabbage that Friday to the guests of the soup kitchen after it was prepared. What was once a 40-pound miracle became part of a delicious meal of cabbage and ham stew for 275 people who relied on the soup kitchen for meals!
When I returned home after serving my cabbage I thought about the people at the soup kitchen. The faces of young children, not any older than me, the same as me except they were hungry. I was just 9 years old at the time, but I knew how I could help. If one cabbage could feed that many people, imagine how many people a whole garden could feed.
My dream started small but it has grown just like my tiny cabbage seedling. I started a garden with the purpose of donating the harvest to people in need. Three years later I now have not one but seventeen gardens! From my garden at school to the garden in my backyard and the ten kid-maintained gardens across the country, the mission is the same; to donate the harvest to help feed people in need.
From my gardens, my not-for-profit organization Katie’s Krops, was born. The mission of Katie’s Krops is to start and maintain vegetable gardens of all sizes and donate the harvest to help feed people in need, as well as to assist and inspire others to do the same.
Why do I, a 12 year old, care about all of this? Because I’ve seen firsthand how real hunger is. The people who rely on the soup kitchen have become my friends as well as my supporters. I care because I can do something about it. I know I’m making a difference. That is the best feeling there is.
My story has taken me down an amazing path that I never intended to take. It is about the people who have believed in me, the people who have supported me, and the people who are helping to make my dream a reality. From my vegetable gardens and the fresh vegetable drives, I’ve donated thousands of pounds of nutritious food to people in need.
My dream of having gardens that are started and managed by kids, just like myself, in all 50 states is becoming a reality. Katie’s Krops has awarded 10 grants to youth in 8 states. Including my numerous gardens in South Carolina, I now have 9 states down, only 41 to go!
My dream, like my gardens, continues to grow. I have learned not only how to grow fresh produce, but the joys of giving back, the value of being kind to the earth so it will continue to be kind to us, the importance of a nutritious meal and how many people, especially children do not have access to healthy well balanced meals. I have learned that gardens grow so much more than flowers and vegetables. Gardens grow love and hope.
I am blessed to have the backing of so many wonderful volunteers, my family and supporters who share my dream to feed people in need through vegetable gardens. I would like to thank Safer Brand for supporting the mission of Katie’s Krops and growing my dream along with my gardens!
A wonderful story that just confirms how something as small as a plant can change life’s direction and impact everyone that reads this story! Keep up the great work Katie and may you reach many, many more people young and old that strive to make a change in this world.