The community garden donated a 15x15 garden plot to select families in the program, as well as the seeds, cages, tools and education classes necessary to equip parents and their children to grow their own gardens, the district said in a press release.
The Jefferson Street Oasis Community Garden — which is billed as “best-kept secret” in Springfield — has 85 plots tended by more than 100 gardeners, a children’s garden, pollinator garden, chickens and more.
Springfield families taking part in the program have learned about the processes of canning and preserving food.
“The goal of the garden aligns with one of the many objectives of the district program: to educate and pull families out of food insecurity,” a district statement said. “Parents and their children build connections with one another by growing food together, and they are able to take home what they grow in the garden.”
The program uses district staff, called parent educators, to improve a family’s economic and health well-being, increase children’s school readiness and success, provide early detection of developmental delays, teach positive parenting practices and connect families to important community services, the release said.