At the beginning of 2021, we pledged to donate $50,000 to communities and organizations whose missions align with ours. Organizations who change the world through gardening — strengthening communities, fighting food insecurity, and addressing mental wellness.
Done. Done. And done.
A little goes a long, long way! For every $3 donated, 5 people receive a meal. We're happy to report that our support resulted in 4,175 meals delivered to Vermonters in need.
With our support, MHA was able to provide free and confidential mental health screenings for 4,000 people. MHA was also able to create and distribute critical materials raising awareness about mental health and offering strategies for recovery and overall wellness.
Our support meant that 180,000 kids — most of whom had never set foot in a garden or experienced the wonder of growing anything before — were introduced to gardening-based learning. Cultivating a love of nature and inspiring future generations of gardeners is what it's all about!
The network of growers who donate surplus food grew so much that it 5x-ed our original contribution. Over the next 20 years, that is expected to scale to the distribution of 1.5 million dollars worth of healthy food to adults and children.
Our efforts contributed to 19,000 individuals and families gaining access to support and services surrounding mental health, developmental, and substance use issues. The Howard Center was also able to offer a telehealth option to clients for the first time — enabling critical support that might otherwise have been impossible to deliver.
Our support helped the Intervale Center serve 100 farms, grow 15,000 lbs. of food, glean an additional 65,000 lbs., and distribute 150,000+ locally-produced meals (which returned $1.5M to local restaurants) across three Vermont counties.
We sent cleanup crews out to VCGN's annual Day In the Dirt program, to get school and community gardens ready for planting, and provided seed money for a mobile classroom to connect people in underserved communities to the benefits of gardening and the impact it can have on their health.
Volunteer crews from Adlucent, LLC (a partner in our sister city of Austin, TX) repaired community gardens for planting, then went back to help with the harvest and delivered it to the SFC and CTFB. Not only did efforts result in bountiful crops, but they also provided opportunities for building connections, outdoor exercise, and learning!
Teams of volunteers from each of our campuses facilitated the donation of 1000 pounds of fresh veggies to Vermont food banks. These were either grown on our company farms, in our home gardens, or gleaned at local farms.
We also planted up and donated 109 mini-gardens to community members in need. Brightly colored reusable grow bags, supplied by SmartPot, contained herbs, edible flowers, and dwarf tomatoes for a whole summer of eating!