By FRANK CARINI/ecoRI.org News staff
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| On a recent Tuesday morning, Charlestown
Community Garden volunteers Alyssa Bibbens, 5, and Ian Kent, 6, pack up freshly picked produce that will be delivered that day to local food pantries. (Frank Carini/ecoRI News photos) |
CHARLESTOWN
— Growing fruits and vegetables in a 227-acre park that includes a wildlife
refuge isn’t easy, but neither is feeding the hungry.
The Charlestown
Community Garden, which organizers refer to as a “sustainable hunger
solution,” is 9,500 square feet of beets, broccoli, blueberries and bok choy.
This bounty is protected from deer, rabbits and other park wildlife by a fence
that rises above the garden and sinks below it, to keep leaping deer and
tunneling groundhogs from snacking on food destined to feed some of South
County’s most needy.
“It’s amazing, and not in a good way, how many people
need food,” said Susie Fehrmann, executive director of the Ninigret Park-based
garden. “We’re more of a farm than a garden. We’re trying to maximize our
produce so we can feed more people. We’re trying to figure out how we can
produce more.”
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| Volunteers John Meiczinger, left, and Steve Symonds team up to do some serious weeding |
The all-volunteer farm with an empty bank account is
producing plenty, thanks to the generosity of area residents and businesses and
the efforts of people like Fehrmann. So far during its first full growing
season, the community garden has grown and delivered nearly 670 pounds of
organic produce, including 206 pounds of kale, 179 pounds of lettuce, 38 pounds
of squash and 35 pounds of green beans.
The Charlestown Community Garden, now in its second year,
is the result of a local Boy Scout’s vision. Chris Hacunda, for his Eagle Scout
project, wanted to plant a community flower garden in Ninigret Park.
When he
contacted Parks & Recreation director Jay Primiano, the affable town
employee tweaked the idea. He suggested that the eager Boy Scout plant
vegetables instead, so that the food could be used to feed senior citizens at
the park’s Community/Senior Center and the rest donated to local pantries.
Besides growing food for the nearby Senior Center, the
community garden distributes the rest of its produce to four other area
institutions — the Bradford Jonnycake Center of
Westerly, the Rhode
Island Center Assisting Those In Need (RICAN), Westerly
Area Rest Meals (WARM) Inc. and the St. Andrew Lutheran Church.
Garden produce also finds its way into local Meals on Wheels deliveries.
“We need to build and maintain the health of our citizens
today and for tomorrow,” Primiano said. “People deserve to eat healthy food.”
The
garden/farm also is nourishing people in another way. It is literally building
community. Volunteers range in age from 5-83, Senior Center staff adds kitchen
scraps to the garden’s three compost piles, volunteerism builds friendships,
mentally disabled adults and children are encouraged to get their hands dirty,
and kids learn there’s more to eating than munching on processed foodstuffs.
“It’s important to be with people,” said local resident
Sal Garofalo. “Socializing and taking with people is important too.”
The 83-year-old Garofalo, who volunteers at the garden
twice a week for about four hours, also does his share of weeding and digging.
“I do whatever they tell me to do,” he said with a wide smile.
Several volunteers are regular workers, but the need for
extra hands is constant, according to Fehrmann. Volunteers don’t have to make a
regular commitment, and just volunteering once for an hour or two makes a
difference, she said.
The
Charlestown Community Garden will be hosting a Harvest Festival on Sept. 22 at
Ninigret Park from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. To volunteer at the garden, just show up on a
Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday morning, or contact Southern Rhode Island
Volunteers at 401-789-2362 or via e-mail at info@southernrivol.org.