While most teens like to spend their summer break relaxing, ten highly motivated high school students from the 70805 area will spend their summer learning community stewardship and healthy eating through agriculture training.
In partnership with Mayor-President Broome’s Youth Workforce Experience, Baton Roots Community Farm at Howell Park will employ these teens to spend their summer weeks planting rows of local vegetables and fruit, harvesting the produce to be distributed locally, and helping seniors with their garden beds at the Harmony Intergenerational Gardens.
Through the Hustle and Grow program, students called “trainees” are introduced to the connection of agriculture and technology, learning how small community farms can be efficiently run in urban settings, allowing for the community to participate in the process. Program coordinator Mitchell Provensal comment,
“By getting youth involved in this community farm we can improve local options for accessing fresh food while developing young leaders in our community.”
After the summer pilot of the program is initiated, Hustle and Grow plans to recur every Saturday throughout the Fall and Spring semesters. “In our climate, we are able to grow fresh vegetables year round, which gives us the opportunity to consistently be able to offer programming and fresh food for our community,” Mitchell explains. To find out more, visit Baton Root’s Facebook page.