GardenWorks Year End Report 2013

L egacy G arden W orks
dreams for the future
This was our first year of running GardenWorks, and we have high
hopes for expanding the program in the future. We hope to:
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Hire more at-risk youth from diverse backgrounds and give them a chance to succeed in our
program.
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Expand our production to include more varied items, including fruit, berries, herbs, and traditional crafts such as soap-making.
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Plow more land, and increase the quantity of
our seasonal yields.
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Sell our fine, local, organic produce to restaurants and caterers here in Wichita to help support
our programs. (At this writing, one local caterer has
agreed to buy produce from us next year.)
a division of Legacy Ministries
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Further the leadership development component of our program, by having qualified young people who have worked for several months return in
leadership positions.
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Continue to improve our soil health and fertility so that we reduce pest and disease problems over
the years. We will use models such as permaculture
which create resilient ecosystems that also produce organic food and useful products.
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Reach out to neighbors with recipes and educational materials with the produce we sell, so they learn how to use the vegetables which may be unfamiliar to them.
“I never thought I’d be into gardening, but the truth is I really like it. I have seen something
that was just a seed turn into a carrot or a bean plant or whatever. That is just cool.”
At-Risk Youth Employment
opportunities to partner in 2014
We are excited about growth for next year and are seeking sustaining partners for our 2014 growing season.
Would you consider sponsoring at-risk youth and Legacy GardenWorks for 1 month, 3 months, 6 months or
an entire 9 month growing season? Additional resource information is available upon request.
Total Monthly Budgets for 2014
1 month total $2,000
3 month total $6,000
6 month total $12,000
9 month total $18,000
legacy ministries, inc.
Thank you for your wonderful support in 2013.
We trust God to provide again in 2014 as we work
together in His kingdom!
Sincerely,
Lauren Scislowski
Legacy GardenWorks Manager
945 S. Wichita St., Wichita, KS 67208
www. legacy-ministries.com
Legacy GardenWorks, the newest initiative of Legacy
Ministries, is a unique youth employment program.
It combines a supportive work environment with
the chance for at-risk youth to build job skills
working in an urban gardening operation. The
youth in our program come from at-risk situations,
including homelessness, drug and alcohol rehab,
and non-traditional high schools. Many have had
few experiences of success in their lives, so the
chance to work with their hands and see something
grow is a profoundly empowering experience.
“I now have a lot more confidence to apply
for other jobs. Before I would have been too
nervous and unconfident about my skills.”
Fresh Produce to
Low-Income Neighborhoods
The other focus of Legacy GardenWorks is to supply fresh, organic, produce to low-income neighbors. All too many residents who live in poverty
rely on processed food found at convenience stores,
rather than the fresh fruits and vegetables that could
drastically improve their health. Much research has
been done on the positive effects of increasing fresh
fruits and veggies in the diet, and in fact a Sedgwick
County’s Public Health priority is to decrease obesity and diabetes by promoting healthy eating. Legacy GardenWorks offers fresh produce all summer
long on a suggested donation basis, so that no one
is turned away who wants to eat healthy food. We
are out on a corner in the neighborhood every week
with the fruits of our labor, including our organic,
fresh vegetables and value-added items like pesto,
homemade bread, applesauce, and apple butter.
“GardenWorks has been a really good experience for me. I plan to find a
job on a farm when I go home so I can work outside with my hands.”
facts from year one
The Work
In our first year, we served 6 at-risk youth. The young people worked an average of 9 hours per week and
were paid $8.00 per hour. In the spring, the youth planted seeds in the greenhouse, prepared the garden beds
and watered the plants. In the summer, plants were transferred to outdoor gardens, and weeding, watering,
harvesting and selling the produce began in earnest. In the fall, the gardens were prepared for winter, and
value-added products like pesto and applesauce were made for fall markets.
impacts
More than just a gardening operation, Legacy
GardenWorks is investing in the lives of youth who
need our help. One young woman, who I’ll call
“Serena,” has a history of family abuse and trauma.
She has moved so many times in her life that she
missed out on many basic academic skills, so she
now struggles in school. She had never had a job
before joining our program, despite being 19 years
old. But, since being involved with Legacy, she has
developed her leadership skills and is now a valued
member of our team. She told a staff member that
at the beginning of the summer, she was using drugs
as a coping mechanism. But she says, “I quit because
now I’m a role model. People look up to me.” This is
a story of empowerment, of a young woman learning
that she can make different choices than what her
circumstances and family would dictate. Of course,
her story is not over yet. She has a long road ahead of
her to find stability and wholeness. But the positive,
enriching community of Legacy GardenWorks has
been a crucial piece of her discovery that she is worth
something and that her life matters.
The Harvest
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70 pounds of tomatoes
80 pounds of winter squash
16 melons
70 peppers
25 eggplants
720 green beans
200 chard leaves
280 carrots
Value Added Items
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50 half-pints of homemade pesto from garden grown basil
35 loaves of fresh baked bread
15 pints of homemade applesauce
10 half-pints of apple butter with apples from a Newton orchard
Other Projects This Year
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Improving our community garden area by building an art fence, soon to be decorated by local artists
Cooking demonstrations with neighborhood kids to promote using healthy produce
Planting fruit trees and other edible perenni-
als to invest in future harvests
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110 beets
Sugar snap peas
Flowers, including zinnias, sunflowers, dahlias, and poppies
Salad greens – lettuce, arugula, spinach
Sweet potatoes (still in the ground at the time of writing)
Monetary Donations
Farm stand donations for produce: Private donor contributions: Total Contributions for 2013:
$1,671
$9,581
$11,252
In-Kind Donations
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Land use for garden and composting
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Mowing services around garden areas
•Water
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Protected land use for bee hives
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Donated lumber for fencing
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20 x 24 hoop house
gratitude
We could not do this work without your generous
support. The two business which have partnered
with us this year have provided land, water, mowing
services, and the on-site hoop house. It is a rare
and unique privilege to run a substantial gardening
operation in the heart of an urban area. If we had to
garden in the suburbs, most of our youth would not
be able to take part in the program. The continued
success of our program to reach youth in the urban
core depends on being where they are and making
a difference in their neighborhood. You are making
this happen in your partnership with Legacy
GardenWorks.
We also thank those of you who have sustained
GardenWorks with your generous monetary gifts.
God has prompted you to give just what was needed
at just the right times. We join with the hymn writer,
in proclaiming:
“Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
sun, moon and stars in their courses above
join with all nature in manifold witness
to God’s great faithfulness, mercy and love.”
We thank you all most heartily for your generous
support.