Spokane Community Garden Alliance Uses Public Spaces to Feed Neighbors in Need
Spokane Community Garden Alliance Uses Public Spaces to Feed Neighbors in Need
BY KIM DEATERWith a mission to provide access to good, clean food, volunteers with the Spokane Community Garden Alliance use public spaces to grow healthy, fresh produce to the under-served and local families in need.
In 2018, Melody Price noticed that many in her local community were in need of food. Not just food, but fresh produce. Price’s passion for gardening overlapped with this need, and soon she began what is now the Spokane Community Garden Alliance (SCGA).
Over the past few years, the SCGA has grown into a small group of volunteers who use sustainable methods to grow, harvest, and deliver fresh produce to local families in need.
Since 2018, the non-profit organization has delivered almost 5000 lbs. of organic produce to area families. That number continues to grow. In season, weekly deliveries are made to families in transitional housing, Our Place, an area food bank, and Calgary Baptist’s Christ Kitchen.
Gardening With a Purpose
Growing that much produce while using sustainable farming methods, requires a great deal of work. Gardening can be back-breaking, especially when you don’t use chemicals and must weed, and sometimes water, by hand. “It’s a true labor of love,” says SCGA President, Bianca Sanchez. “We want everyone to have access to clean, food. Good food equals good health. Our health and the health of the planet go hand-in-hand, which is why we use sustainable farming methods. These methods help the local bee population, keep our drinking water free of chemicals and provide clean food. We’re all in this together.”
Volunteers spend dozens of hours planning for the season and then hundreds of hours once the growing season starts. They spend much of that time working together, so it’s a tight-knit group with a shared sense of community.
Vice President Ramona Tyler has been with the organization from the beginning. “I would do anything for a person in need,” says Tyler, who spends endless hours working at the Finch Arboretum garden to fill her desire to serve those in her community. “There’s a real sense of satisfaction in the physical labor, having your hands in the soil, and watching the garden come to life. And, of course, there’s the gratification of delivering this abundance to people in need. We love what we do. It’s a joy, and we laugh a lot.”
Spokane Community Support
And, it’s not just the volunteers. The organization wouldn’t exist without the generosity of others. Philanthropists Nancy Isaacson and Al Fein donate the use of their land which contains SCGA’s largest garden – almost 2 acres. Spokane City Parks lets the group use garden plots in Polly Judd Park and the Finch Arboretum and donates the water for the park gardens. SCGA gets support from many others, too. Money is always tight so grants received from the Associated Garden Clubs of Spokane and the Lorax Project made it possible to finance the 2021 season.
The SCGA plans to expand their efforts to include nutrition and sustainability education. They want to provide opportunities for children to help garden, even tend their own small plots and keep the food they grow and harvest. The association recognizes that healthy food isn't always accessible to those living in poverty; their goal is not to shame people into eating more nutritious food, but rather to empower and educate them while providing a more nutritious alternative.
About the Spokane Community Garden Alliance
The SCGA is always in need of volunteers and donations. This all-volunteer group uses donations to buy seed, tools, organic plant food, soil, tarps, fencing, coolers, water, compost bins, etc. If you know of a group in need of donations of food, please send an email to spokanecga@gmail.com.